Love and Loneliness
by trashunlimited
Summary: (originally published on a03-cover image so far is just a traced screenshot, hopefully can replace it later on) Muskegon, Michigan 1978-After literally running into her, Rick Sanchez meets the woman that will forever change his life, all the while being targeted by an alien empire.
1. Chapter 1

**a/n: this was originally published to ao3 back in november 2017. i'm just transferring it here for more people to see it.**

 **A few notes:**  
 ***Story takes place in Muskegon, because Beth mentions growing up there in "Meeseeks and Destroy". I know it's been stated they live in a city outside Seattle, and Seattle is in Washington state while Muskegon is in Michigan. There will be an explanation later.**  
 ***Rick is 32 because in "Rest and Ricklaxtion" Toxic Rick says he's been in Rick's brain for 70 years. 2017-70=1947, and 1978-1947=32. Julie also is 27, they have a 5 year age difference(she would've been born in 1951 because 1978-27=1951)**  
 ***Young Rick and Rick as he is now are not the same all the time, they both are similar, but have major differences that will be highlighted throughout.**  
 ***I am, and always have been, of the belief Rick still loves his wife(that's why I made Julie in the first place). Why he left will be explained later.**  
 ***There will be violence, but nothing will ever be described in graphic detail. You can still always skip over that stuff if you want.**

* * *

Rick Sanchez put the finishing touches on his latest invention, a proud grin on his face. The invention happened to be one that was able to give him any breakfast food he wanted. He rubbed his hands together excitedly, knowing how much easier it would be to get breakfast tomorrow. He was a genius, an inventor, and he was making stuff like...that. But he enjoyed it, he had already made incredible things and was capable of interstellar travel far beyond just the moon and even the solar system itself. Rick decided to use his gifts for the simpler things in life too.

He picked up the invention and carried it over from the lab he had built, to the small kitchen in his apartment and set it on the counter. Rick then headed over to his bedroom, and the empty feelings returned to him. There was no one in his apartment but him, he was all alone. It's not like anyone in the apartment complex talked to him either, as Rick never talked to them, being reclusive. It was assumed Rick was "some weird loner", so nobody bothered him.

As much as Rick enjoyed the privacy, the feelings of loneliness burned within him. Ever since he could remember, he never had anyone but himself. Even the people who should've cared for him, didn't. He had only really gotten friends when he developed his portal technology. Despite the close friends he did have, like Birdperson and Squanchy, on Earth, there was no one but him.

Rick just wanted someone, anyone, to cure his lonely feelings, but at this point, it didn't seem likely. He was already 32 years old after all, he was starting to accept he could never find the happiness he longed for. Rick had a tendency to act mean and cold, which pushed people away from him, isolating him further.

With a heavy sigh, Rick took off his lab coat and black shirt, before sitting on his bed. He really did hope the pain and misery he had dealt with for his whole life would end someday.

* * *

On the outskirts of the city, a young redheaded women named Juliana Kenyon, or just Julie for short, was in her own bedroom. She was sitting on the stool in front of her dresser, happily brushing her hair, something she did each night before going to bed and each morning when she woke up. When she finished, Julie looked at herself in the mirror and smiled, her long hair looking much neater now.

She sat up and then walked over to her bookshelf, picking up a romance novel, her favourite genre, and headed off to bed with it. Julie went over to the page where the bookmark was, took it out, and began reading.

Her heart seemed to fill with love and warm feelings as she read through the pages, but underneath, she felt feelings of loneliness, pain and sadness. At 27 years old, she was still waiting to find "the one" for her, and the more time passed, the worse her empty feelings grew. Ever since Julie was a little girl, she longed for love, although back then it was more childish and innocent. Her mother would read her stories featuring love, and would watch movies with it too, there was also the strong love her parents shared, it all inspired her hopeless romantic personality. As a child, she was told in her future she would be nothing more than a housewife and mother, and she accepted this wholeheartedly. She imagined her future husband as a dashing prince or a knight in shining armour. Julie was older now, and had more realistic ideas on what her future husband would be like, but those old innocent fantasies still amused her.

Julie had attempted dating in the past, but it never went well. She started to blame herself for her relationship problems, thinking it was her fault. It tugged painfully at her heart, and she felt so lonely, so sad and dejected. She wondered if she would ever find the love her heart so longed for. Loneliness was a problem for her, it had been that way for a long time. Even as a little girl, her shyness prevented her from making many friends. Julie never had any siblings either. Even with the lack of friends, brothers or sisters, she still had a few friends and her parents. But at the same time, she longed for more.

After finishing reading more of her book, Julie put it back on the bookshelf and tucked herself into bed. She held back the tears, and fell asleep, dreaming of what her true love would be like….

* * *

Rick came across a room with a glowing green crystal-like thing, that had what seemed to be wires hooked up to it. The crystal-like object appeared to be radiating with energy, and it made sense, this was a powerful source of fuel for the entirety of the Fyralogin Empire. Though the empire had fell into decline, it was still going on and the empress of the empire seemed to not be bothered by it, keeping a regal look wherever she went.

Rick approached the crystal-like fuel, and took a chunk out if it, instantly causing sirens to blare.

 _Alert! The fuel source has been tampered with! I repeat, the fuel source has been tampered with!_

He wasn't bothered though, and pulled a high-tech gun from one of his pockets, anticipating what was next.

Four guards opened the door and aimed their guns at him. "Put the gun down or we'll be forced to shoot." One said.

Rick rolled his eyes, before looking at his gun and fired quickly at all four, the shots killing each instantly. He then exited the room and was met with more guards, but he didn't mind. They started firing their bullets at him, but Rick dodged them all with ease, and managed to fire back unfazed.

He started to run off as the guards kept firing at him. Rick took out his portal gun and typed in the code for Earth, before firing the gun and making a green portal. Just before he could enter though, one guard managed to shoot him in the leg, and he tumbled right through the portal.

* * *

Julie was walking along the sidewalk back home, having recently left the house of a friend of hers. It was a cool night, there was a slight breeze, and in the sky she could see some stars and the pale silvery moon. There wasn't much light either, minus the streetlights and the light from some houses. The atmosphere was pleasant and serene, Julie felt quite peaceful as she walked back home.

Out of nowhere, Julie saw a green portal and was shocked and surprised. Then, a man jumped out and landed right on her! She was eventually able to get up, albeit in a bit of pain, but otherwise was fine. But she became worried when she saw the man was having trouble getting up. "Are you...alright?" She asked, concern in her voice.

"What the fuck does it look like you idiot?!" He yelled, holding onto his leg.

Julie then realized he couldn't get up, as there was a pain in his leg. "Do you….w-want help u-up?"

Rick looked up at her, confused and annoyed. "Huh? Why do y-you want to h-help me?" He found himself focused on her, entranced by her beauty. Her long red hair flowed gently, her skin was pale and white as snow, and...he liked her figure.

"Well.." Julie began, her voice indicating how shy and nervous she was talking to him. "You're hurt...aren't you?" When she spoke, Rick was snapped out of his trance.

"Uh...I m-mean.." He suddenly hissed in pain and grabbed his leg again.

"Oh dear...we should get you to a hospital."

Rick's eyes snapped open. "Fuck no! Y-You are _not_ t-taking me to a hospital."

"Why not?"

"Just.." He tried to talk, but he was in too much pain.

Julie wanted to help him, and if he wouldn't go to a hospital...well...she would let him stay with her. Due to her shyness, the idea scared her, but her heart was too gentle to refuse him. Rick watched as she helped him up, and he started to walk with her, well, limp with her. "Where are you taking me?" He asked.

"My house. You won't go to a hospital, so it's the next best option. Don't worry, I have medical training, I went to nursing school after all."

Rick just grumbled, unsure why she was doing this, but accepted it nonetheless. At least he got to be around a beautiful redhead, and he...really..really liked redheads.

* * *

On the way there, Julie told him her name, Rick had introduced himself too, although more begrudgingly, as Rick Sanchez. She noticed his tone sounded annoyed, but she didn't think about it too much. He insisted on carrying the crystal-like object though, and though Julie was curious about it, she didn't say anything.

After arriving at Julie's house, she sat him down on her couch, and began inspecting his leg to find the source of his pain. She gasped when she saw a bullet sticking out the back of his knee, but it didn't look like a normal bullet. The bullet was jagged-looking, and oddly glowed a lime-green colour. First he came out of a portal, then he refused to go to a hospital, and now he had a strange bullet sticking out of him. This man was a mystery, and although Julie had so many questions for him, she decided to ask later, when he was in a better mood.

Julie dealt with his wound, and soon carefully extracted the bullet. She knew it should be left up to a professional, but...she did have medical training after all, she knew what she was doing. She patched up his wound and threw the bullet in the garbage. "All better?" She asked.

Rick rubbed the wound a little, and eyed her. "Yes."

"That's good." Julie smiled. "You should get some sleep now okay?"

"Wh-whatever." Rick grumbled.

Julie wasn't sure what to say, he came off quite mean, and it bothered her. But she was the type of person who believed there was good in everyone, she knew Rick had a nicer side he would show her in time, she just had to wait. Besides, Julie made a point to be kind to others, no matter how mean and nasty they treated her.

"Well...um...good night I guess." She said, a bit sad.

Rick just turned over to his side and began to sleep. Julie was happy he seemed to be doing better, but at the same time, she wished he treated her more kindly. She kept her eyes on him momentarily, until she headed into her own room.

Julie knew harbouring a strange man in her home wasn't the smartest idea, but again, her heart was too gentle to do otherwise. She loved helping people, even complete strangers despite her shyness. Even though Rick acted rude, her hope was he would open up and be kind to her eventually.

She finished brushing her hair and changing into her nightgown before heading off to bed. As Julie drifted off to sleep, her mind couldn't stop thinking about him.

As for Rick, he wasn't sure how to deal with how nice and sweet she was being to him, it was all so new and different for him. He had never met anyone like her. She was being very kind to him and while he appreciated it, a part of him said not to trust her, but another part believed she meant no harm. If she wanted to hurt him, she would've done it by now. Nothing seemed too odd or out of place, and Julie seemed genuine. But he wasn't completely ready to trust her or let his guard down, not yet at least.

* * *

When morning arrived, Julie decided to surprise Rick with breakfast, hoping it would put him in a better mood. She thought about what to make him, unsure what to go with since she didn't know what he liked, but decided on fluffy pancakes, pancakes were a common and beloved breakfast food after all. She hoped he liked them just as much as she did.

Rick woke up to a delicious smell, and sat up, wondering where it was coming from. That's when he spotted Julie placing two pancakes on a plate. She looked behind her to see Rick was up, and smiled. "What...kind of topping do….you want on your….pancakes? Blueberries? Chocolate chips? Or just syrup?"

Rick was taken aback by her generosity and kindness, but gathered himself together. "Uh...I'll j-just have some syrup."

"Syrup it is." She beamed. "I think...I'll have some on mine too." He watched as she drizzled syrup over the two pancakes she had placed on that plate, picked it up, and placed it on the coffee table in front of him. Then she also got him a fork and a knife for him, before getting her own pancakes.

He stared at the breakfast she had made for him, baffled by her kindness. He was still figuring out if he should trust her or not, but for now, Rick figured he might as well indulge in the food she made. When he took the first bite, he was amazed by how delicious it was, and quickly ate it up. Julie watched him as she went over to sit beside him with her own pancakes, giggling a little bit. After finishing, his face was covered in syrup, making Julie laugh and prompting her to get a wet towel to clean his face. He didn't like it very much, but didn't bother fighting, he just looked annoyed. Besides, his leg still ached a bit and so he knew it was best to not move around a lot.

'You're...kind of silly.." She chuckled.

"What? Do you have a problem with that?" Rick accused sharply.

Julie was surprised by how harsh he was being, and was hurt. "No...I didn't mean it like that. I..I like your silliness…"

Rick realized that maybe he came off too strong, and saw how genuinely upset she was. He did admittedly feel bad at least, but he wasn't ready to let his guard down with her, even if he found her very attractive. "Huh. Whatever then." He went back to eating.

Julie pressed her lips together, wondering when she should starting questioning him. She wanted to be his friend, but she also wanted to be respectful. She wondered why he was being so rude though. "Um...I want to ask..why are you being so mean to me? Did I do something wrong? If I did, I'm so sorry and I won't do it again."

Rick stopped eating and stared at her, gripping onto his fork. "I don't...I don't t-trust people easily o-okay? Jesus…" He snarled.

She felt even more hurt than before, she tried not to let his rudeness get to her, but she couldn't stop it from bothering her. "Oh...okay then…" Rick then was surprised when he saw her start to cry, he hadn't meant for that.

"Woah! Uh…" Now he didn't know what to say, he never had to comfort anyone before. "Um...t-t-there's no n-need to start c-crying, it's not that b-big of a deal."

"But it is!" Julie cried. 'I'm really trying to help you, I want you to recover from your injury, but you don't trust me and I just.." She sniffled.

Rick felt even worse, maybe had been a bit harsh with her, but his instincts had always told him not to trust people he didn't know well enough. At the same time...he was starting to see something was different with her. Who just randomly lets a stranger into their room to treat their wounds, let them stay overnight and make them breakfast? She was being genuine in her kindness, generosity and care for him, he saw it clear as day. He knew when people were lying, but the more he thought about it, he knew she wasn't, she was being honest with him. It made her even more intriguing to him. Rick decided maybe he should be a bit nicer to her, but he still wasn't ready to completely let his guard down.

"It's fine. Besides, these pancakes you made? They're really fucking g-good, how did you know I like th-them fluffy?" He asked, his tone sounding a little more soft.

Julie started to wipe a few of her tears away, and smiled. "Lucky guess I suppose."

* * *

It was at that point that Rick finally started acting nicer, and so his mood lightened. Julie was happy about this, but her questions were still bugging her. The crystal-like object was resting at the foot of couch, and Julie was wondering what it was, and why it glowed. She also wanted to know about the portal, the strange bullet, and why he was even shot in the first place. He was such a mystery to her. Thinking about the portal, she even questioned if he was actually a human, knowing their species didn't have the ability to make any yet, but didn't dwell on it much.

After breakfast, Julie put the plates, fork and knives in the sink before sitting back on the couch with Rick. He could tell something was bothering her. "What's up?" He asked.

She looked away for a moment. "I've had some questions that have been bothering me since last night."

"Oh...I-I see.." He said, his voice changing to a more flat, serious tone.

"First of all, how did you come out of a portal?'

Rick's portal gun was being kept in the pocket of his lab coat, he gripped onto it, deciding whether or not to answer her question.

"Are you...okay with answering yet?" Julie wasn't sure if now was exactly a good time. She knew he had trust issues, and maybe he needed more time with her first.

"Ah, it's fine. Don't worry." Rick decided to only give her a partial answer rather than a complete one, he'd give her the complete one once he grew to trust her more. "I can create portals, makes it easier to travel from place t-to place."

Julie was instantly curious of how he could make portals, but she would ask later. For now, she had more important questions to ask. "Really? That's so cool!" She grinned. "My second question is, what is that crystal-like object?" As she asked this, she pointed right at it.

Again, Rick decided not to give her a complete answer yet. "It's a fuel source, a very powerful one at that."

Julie found herself already amazed by him. He could create portals and had access to a very interesting looking fuel source; the fact it was glowing and looked like crystals reminded her of something from a fantasy world. But she still had two more questions left. "Why didn't you want to go to the hospital?"

Rick was silent for a moment, before answering. "Maybe it's better nobody b-but you saw the bullet."

That was odd, but she used it to segway into her final question. "Well..what's with that strange bullet and why did someone even shoot you in the first place?"

This was a bit harder to answer, but Rick managed to give her something. "Some things are better left unsaid."

This unnerved her, a lot. "O...Okay then.."

He laughed. "Don't think about it okay?"

"I won't." Julie replied. But it still bugged her at the back of her mind...this strange mysterious man...she wondered what he was hiding from her.


	2. Chapter 2

Later on in the day, Julie left to go get some groceries, mentioning to Rick there were some things she needed to get. She told him she'd be back soon enough, and left carrying her purse.

Rick took this time to look around the house, looking for anything suspicious. He got off the couch and limped around, searching as best as he could. But, despite the lengths he searched, he couldn't find anything, she just seemed to be a normal girl, mundane and simple. To be honest, the worst thing he found was her collection of romance novels.

Because he couldn't find anything off in the slightest, this made Rick think perhaps she was trustworthy. While he still wasn't willing to open up or completely trust her yet, the chance of him doing so was certainly increased. As much as liked being around her already, he felt that once she knew the truth about him, that she would hate him.

After his search, Rick went back to the couch and decided to just kick back and relax. It was a little hot out, so he took off his lab coat and shirt, leaving him topless. He turned on the TV and began to watch it, feeling bored out his mind. He started thinking about Julie, how nice and hospitable she was towards him….how pretty she was..he tried to shrug that last part off, but it kept coming back to him and he didn't know how to feel about it. At this point, Rick was simply attracted to her looks, and he was sure it would be nothing beyond that. As much as he was lonely and longed for company, he thought love was ridiculous, just a chemical reaction in the brain that compelled animals to breed. Despite this, he simply couldn't stop thinking about her.

* * *

Julie returned home around noon, carrying a few bags of groceries which she set on the counter. She turned to see Rick, who was staring back at her, and her eyes widened when she saw he was topless. His body was muscular, but not overly so. He was well-built, with only a few hairs on his chest and in...another place..thankfully, he didn't seem to notice. "Are y-you g-gonna say something or..?" He asked.

"Oh right! Yes...I'm sorry.." She said, flustered and embarrassed. "Are you feeling better?"

"A little." Rick admitted. "I mean, there's still a bit of pain and I still have to limp around, but it's not as bad as last night."

"That's good." Julie smiled. "I think you should continue lying down though, and not move around too much, your wound still needs time to heal properly."

Rick remembered when he had been snooping around earlier, but decided maybe it wasn't best to bring that up. He had seen the nursing degree she had, so he knew she hadn't been lying about going to nursing school. He was aware that she knew more about this kind of stuff than he did. He looked at the bags of groceries on the counter and thought of something to ask. "Did y-you buy wafer cookies?"

"Why yes I did! Did you want any?" She questioned.

"Yep." He grinned. At this, Julie pulled out a box and handed it to him, watching as he opened it up and happily began munching on one. She watched him, feeling amused by how excited he was eating that wafer cookie. She was glad Rick was doing much better than he had last night. Her hope was that he would continue to improve, and maybe...they could become friends. Julie had a few friends, but she didn't have much, being very shy. She liked the prospect of making a new one, even if things had started out a bit rocky between them.

She joined him in eating cookies, and two began conversing with each other. Slowly but surely, their conversation became more relaxed. Julie found herself laughing and blushing a few times, she was really taking a liking to him, as he was with her.

After some time, Rick decided to ask her something he'd been curious about. "So, do you live by yourself?"

Julie nodded. "Yes...it's...just me."

"Do you actually talk to anyone? Or..what?"

She looked down nervously, before finally answering his question. "I have two best friends...but that's it really.."

"No family?"

Julie didn't like this question, Rick could tell it made her uncomfortable. "M-Must've h-hit a nerve...uh…"

She managed to regain her composure and smiled at him. "It's okay, I guess I could ask you the same questions."

Unlike Julie, Rick showed no problem answering those questions. "I live by myself too in a dingy apartment. I don't talk to my family, I cut off all contact with them. As for friends...I...don't have many either."

That was when Julie realized they shared some very personal things in common: they both were lonely, they both lived alone, and they both didn't talk to many people. She was curious on why he didn't talk to his family anymore, but figured the answer was too personal, so didn't bother to ask. But she liked they were already similar in a way, it felt nice. "Do you...want to be friends?" She asked shyly.

Rick's eyes widened. "Really? Y-You….w-w-wanna be f-friends?"

She blushed, feeling nervous. "Yea..we..we both don't have many people in our lives, and I really like the idea of having a new friend..I mean..um...if you're okay with it."

He was surprised, but also happy. Despite his trust issues, he did enjoy the prospect of making a new friend. "No! I'm...I'm fine with it. Friends?"

"F-Friends.."

* * *

Later on, Julie began making supper for the two of them. She had asked him what he wanted to eat, and he told her he was in the mood for burgers and fries, so that's what she made. She brought out some condiments and such, not sure what Rick liked on his burgers, and ended up helping him over to the counter so he could pick exactly what he wanted. When they put their burgers together, Julie only ended up making a simple cheeseburger with ketchup on top. Rick on the other hand, had covered his burger in condiments and dumped pickles onto it, he had even doused his fries in ketchup, making Julie laugh. Rick found he liked the sound of her laughter, it was...cute...but as soon as he thought of that, he shook it away, he was not going to be thinking things like that.

Julie also found Rick's silliness charming, he was already able to make her laugh and smile. It was something she appreciated a lot.

They decided, since Rick still couldn't move around much, that they should just watch a movie. So, Julie used the dial on the TV to flip through the channels, until they found a movie and started watching together, while eating. After the movie, Rick found Julie had fallen asleep. He chucked to himself, and poked her until she woke up. "Julie..you fell asleep." He informed her, a grin on his face. "Was the movie that boring?"

"Ah..no no it wasn't!" She said, feeling embarrassed. "I was just tired I guess."

"Then I suppose it would be a good time to go to sleep." Rick shrugged.

Julie seemed fine with this. "Alright, I'll just clean up first, then we can head off to bed." And that's just what she did.

* * *

On a distant planet called Fyralog, the home planet of the Fyralogin Empire, their empress Pyri was talking to one of her best generals, Cyn. She had found out a piece of their empire's fuel source was gone, and was enraged, if even just a piece was gone it jeopardized their entire empire; the fuel source was vital, providing electricity and power to the rest of their empire, they needed that piece back. The security cameras had captured the thief, well-known criminal Rick Sanchez. He was highly dangerous, so she knew this task would be difficult.

"Cyn, despite being a powerful general, and one of the best in our empire, this is still a very dangerous task, Rick Sanchez isn't someone to be messed with, he's not just anyone after all. By agreeing to this, you're putting your life in danger." Pyri warned him.

Cyn looked annoyed. "Yes, I'm well aware Your Imperial Highness, he's one of the most wanted and dangerous criminals in the entire galaxy. You think I haven't heard of that guy? I know fully well who he is."

Pyri sighed. "Cyn, I hope you are taking this seriously. That man has the capacity to destroy entire worlds, he is not to be taken lightly."

"Oh I am, but I still believe I am fully capable of apprehending that criminal myself." Cyn boasted. "And you know what I'll do? I'll kill him myself, since he's so dangerous, it's better to kill him than to just simply lock him up."

Pyri had heard of all the things Rick had done in his short few years as a criminal, and it made her worried for Cyn's safety. But, he was her best option in retrieving their fuel source, she didn't have much of a choice. "Fine. The information on him and his home planet Earth will be provided to you on your ship, go on now, I have other duties to attend to."

Cyn grumbled, a bit annoyed at her simply dismissing him like that, but she was his empress, he had to obey her and respect her.

Once he arrived on his ship, he pressed a button, and a bunch of info on Rick popped up in front of him.

 _Name: Ricardo "Rick" Sanchez_  
 _Home Planet: Earth_  
 _Species: Human_  
 _D.O.B.(on respective planet's years): ****** ** 1947 C.E._  
 _Age: 32 years old_  
 _Gender: Male_  
 _Sex: Male_

 _Criminal Record:_  
 _Rick has committed numerous crimes since his crime spree began a few years back. He is a murderer, a thief, has committed armed robbery and has been spotted doing illegal drugs. He is able to destroy entire worlds at the drop of a hat._

 _While his crime spree has too many crimes to count here, those were his most notable ones. He has also committed lesser crimes like public indecency and disturbance of the peace._

 _He is affiliated with two other criminals known as "Birdperson" and "Squanchy", it is suspected they are all part of a band called "The Flesh Curtains", but whether or not it is actually them is yet to be determined._

 _WARNING: HIGHLY DANGEROUS, AVOID AT ALL COSTS, ONLY APPROACH IF ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY._

Cyn brushed off the warning at the end. He had already helped capture and take down other notorious criminals, Rick would be a breeze.

Next, he pulled up the info on Earth, which even managed to provide the planets coordinates.

 _Earth is a planet located here ************ within the Milky Way Galaxy. It should be noted Earth is a very primitive planet, with their dominant species homo sapien sapiens, better known as humans, being very backwards and barbaric._

 _Because of this, it is not recommended to approach this planet. Humans are noted to have very primitive space travel, only able to reach their moon. They can't understand or comprehend the rest of us. While they can be observed from a distance, talking to them is not a good idea, they may try to kill you._

Cyn had a good chuckle out of this, humans being barbaric savages, to him, made this whole thing even easier. It would be very simple for him, not a challenge at all, Pyri was wrong to be so worried for him, he had this covered.

* * *

A few days later, Rick's leg had healed enough to the point where he no longer needed to limp around anymore. So, he decided now he was able to use the fuel source as he had intended to.

Using what he could find in Julie's garage, he put together a gun, and fueled it with...the fuel source of course. He grabbed a box that was empty, and fired at it, causing it to explode, but nothing else. The loud noise from the explosion startled Julie and she ran into the garage. "Rick! What was that?"

He gave her a wicked, devious smile, and started laughing maniacally. "I did it Julie! It worked!"

"What worked?"

"The f-fuel source! I used it to power this," He pulled up his gun. "And I fired it at an empty box, and the explosion sound is the noise y-you heard, hope y-you don't m-mind."

Julie breathed a sigh of relief. "That's fine, just...warn me next time okay?"

"O-Okay."

Julie then realized something. "If you can walk around now, um, that means...you can go now.." She didn't sound very happy saying this.

"Yeah, I can g-go now, but don't worry, we can still talk to each o-other." Rick assured her. "I'll give you my phone number, and you can give me y-yours."

Her face lit up at this. "Really? That's a great idea!"

So, they wrote each other's phone numbers on slips of paper and exchanged them. Rick soon left, looking solemn. He had grown fond of her, and knew he would miss her, but at least they could still talk to each other.

He returned back to his apartment, and placed the slip of paper on the side table next to his bed, planning to call Julie tomorrow. Rick then took his "explosion" gun with him to his lab, and placed it on the table. Now, he could get back to his projects.

* * *

Cyn had finally managed to end up at Earth, but now he was faced with the issue of finding where exactly Rick was, but with the press of a few buttons, he turned on the tracker of his ship. He would find him sooner rather than later.

* * *

 **a/n:I literally just came up with "Fyralogin", "Pyri" and "Cyn" on the spot, which is basically where most of the names of random alien characters in the show come from. Although I guess Cyn is just Cyan minus the a, and Pyri is like "pyre".**

 **So..some of you may be curious of the Fyralogin empire, I made it up! I figured there had to be some great power in the galaxy before the Galactic Federation, and when I tried to use the Federation as the enemies in the past, it didn't work it out well…**

 **I also used some real world empires as inspiration, namely the British Empire and Roman Empire…make of that what you will. I am a history nerd..I guess that's also why writing a story set in the past was so exciting to me, I did a lot of research into the 1970s, as well as the 1960s and 1950s for this story.**


	3. Chapter 3

Something that had been on Julie's mind since befriending Rick, was the mystery sounding him. During the few days he had lived with her, he had always remained very secretive, and even after leaving, it was still the same way. Julie liked him, he was her friend after all, but she longed to know more about him. At the same time, Julie respected his space, and let him have it, but his secretive nature still bothered her.

To deal with this, she decided to talk to her two best friends: Mark Norris and Vivian Curtis. She had known both for years, Vivian since they were babies, and Mark since they were teenagers. She had could talk to them about almost anything, this included.

So, one day she went over to visit Mark at his apartment, and invited Vivian over. They would have to deal with Mark's annoying roommate Johnny, but other than that, she figured things would go over smoothly.

"My new friend, Rick, is such a mystery, he always tends to hide things from me. When I met him, he was coming out of a portal and had been shot, holding a crystal-like fuel source. I had asked him why he'd been shot and why he wouldn't let me take him to the hospital, he was staying at my place, but he just gave me vague answers. I want to know more about him, so we can be closer, but I also want to give him space. What should I do?" Julie asked.

Mark thought about it, stroking the stray hairs on his chin. "By the sound of it...he could be a criminal, considering he'd been shot...or maybe..he could be an alien from a world even more advanced than our own, just disguised as a human! How amazing would that be?"

Julie did laugh a little at this. "Yeah...it..would be...but he told me he lives alone in an apartment…"

This prompted Mark to come up with something else. "I have an idea! What if….he's a lonely, tortured genius, whose managed to create amazing inventions he keeps to himself for whatever reason. Maybe he hates the world and doesn't we think deserve them or something. But anyways, this guy also made portals, and maybe he can travel to other planets and galaxies! That would be amazing! Again, considering he got shot, he really could be a criminal."

His theory did sound a bit out there, but Julie figured she should consider all the possibilities regarding Rick. "Maybe…"

Vivian facepalmed at this. "This is all so ridiculous. You let a random stranger come into your house? And now Mark is coming up with these outlandish theories about him? Give me a break.."

Mark just grinned at her. "Aw Viv, don't be like this! I mean really, what do you think is going on? You don't think Julie would lie about something like this do you?"

Vivian became flustered from his words. "What? No of course not..I mean...this is all just.."

"Then what do you think is going on?" He asked.

She couldn't give him an answer, she just grumbled.

Julie decided to interject at this. "I took him in because he was hurt. I did want to take him to the hospital, but like I said, he refused. I didn't know what else to do."

Again, Vivian didn't respond, she just rolled at her eyes.

Mark continued to talk, seeing that no one else was. "Jules, I think when the time is right, Rick will open up to you. It may take awhile, but I'm sure it'll happen. I guess you just have to be patient."

Julie nodded. "You're right, I guess my mind's been focusing on this because...I just don't know what to think. But, he's my friend. He wasn't the nicest at first, however, he get along better now and I do..enjoy being around him and all.."

Mark raised a brow suggestively. "You like being around him huh?"

She realized what he was getting at and blushed nervously. "It's...it's not like that! I mean...he's kinda attractive...a little..."

"Aw Jules, I was just teasing!" Mark laughed. "But...I mean...if you do end up with this guy...whether he's a lonely, tortured genius or an alien from an advanced world...it would be really cool don't you think?"

Well, Julie had to admit, he did have a point there. "I...I guess…"

Vivian decided to get involved in the conversation again because of this. "Julie, that's not really a good idea. What if this guy is a criminal? It could put you in serious danger."

Julie's blush faded and she looked upset. "Um.."

"Vivian! Don't try to suck the fun out of this!" Mark protested. "And anyways, Julie can be with whoever she wants, it's not our choice."

"But-"

"Vivian...don't you remember I have a criminal record too? Just relax about all this." He pointed out.

Vivian was at a loss for words, feeling utterly defeated. "Fine...whatever.." She then turned ro Julie. "Be careful about all this okay?"

She smiled at her. "I will."

The rest of the time Julie spent with the two of them went well, but as soon as Johnny came by, she decided to leave; he didn't understand a single thing about personal space, at all.

* * *

Later on in the day, Julie decided to pay a visit to Rick. She did miss him after all, and though she wanted answers, she figured it was best to wait. He had told her where his apartment was, and when she went over to knock on his door, someone, presumably another person in the apartment complex, interrupted her. "Why are you bothering going in there? That guy that lives there? He never talks to anyone, he just keeps to himself."

Julie had her knuckle near the door, she wasn't sure what to say to that, but it did give her an idea of his reputation here. "Umm...well...he does to talk to me...we're friends."

The person was surprised by this. "Really? That's pretty amazing, you actually got him to not only talk to you, but actually befriend you too."

When Julie didn't respond, they spoke up again. "Good luck remaining friends with him." They muttered, then walked into their apartment.

Julie thought about what had just happened, and she realized it showed how lonely and antisocial Rick actually was. She felt so bad for him, and she wondered why he was reclusive to begin with. She had so many questions about him and virtually no answers…

Taking a deep breath, Julie knocked on the door and was soon greeted by a disheveled-looking Rick. "Hi Rick…" She greeted shyly. "Are you okay? You look a little messy.."

"I'm fine, just worked a little too m-much last night." He told her, brushing off her concerns. "Come in."

Julie did so, and looked around. She noted it appeared messy, just like him. The coffee table was covered in papers that seemed to have notes, drawings, charts and graphs on it. The kitchen area didn't fare much better, there was cups, plates and other dishes everywhere. But it wasn't all bad. There was posters for numerous bands she enjoyed like Queen, Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones, as well as one she didn't recognize called "The Flesh Curtains". There was also posters for movies like The Rocky Horror Picture Show and The Godfather. The TV was on too, but it showed nothing but static. Julie continued looking around for a moment before focusing on Rick himself again.

"It's...nice here.." She smiled awkwardly, trying to be kind.

Rick laughed. "N-No it's okay, I know this place is a mess. Y-You don't have to pretend to like i-i-it."

Julie breathed out a sigh of relief, making Rick laugh even more, and she joined in on it. She looked back at "The Flesh Curtains" poster, and thought she could ask about that at least. "What's that band..The Flesh Curtains? I've never heard of them."

His laughter faded. "It's just some unknown band, I happen to like them."

"Can you show me their music?"

"Maybe later.."

Julie didn't know what was wrong with asking about that band, it was really weird. Why did he have a problem with it? She shrugged it off and sat down on the couch. "Um..I'm sorry..do you think we could at least watch TV or something?"

A smile formed on his face and he sat down beside her. "That sounds good."

As they did so, Julie couldn't help but look at the papers on the coffee table. The drawings seemed to be of inventions, and she had no idea what was going on with the notes, charts and graphs. Seeing them though, really bolstered the theory Mark came up that Rick was a genius. Julie really wanted to ask about it, but decided against it, he would tell her when he was ready.

* * *

Cyn was thrilled when he noticed he had finally tracked down Rick's location, it was apparently in some place called Muskegon. When he arrived there, he kept his ship invisible until the tracker found Rick's exact location, and he landed his ship there, right in front of the apartment complex.

He barged down Rick's apartment door, surprising both him and Julie. Rick got up and narrowed his eyes at Cyn, knowing exactly why he was here. Meanwhile, Julie's mouth was hanging open, and she was staring at Cyn in complete shock. There was an alien here! She could tell he was one from his cyan-blue skin, pointed fuzzy ears and four eyes. Her mind was racing, and she was glued to the spot in shock.

Cyn was glaring right back at Rick. "Give back the fuel source Sanchez! Or I'll take it myself."

Rick laughed mockingly. "Too late, I already used it for a gun I-I made."

"You what?!" Cyn exclaimed. He was angered even further, he couldn't believe his empire's precious fuel source had been wasted on a gun of all things. He started shooting at Rick, but he was able to dodge all the bullets.

Rick turned his head over at a frightened Julie for a moment, a look of worry in his eyes. "J-Julie! Get away! Go hide somewhere!" He yelled. Seeing no other option, she did as told. Julie went over and found a room with a bunch of advanced technology inside of it, shocking her. It was a room that seemed safe to hide in, so that's what she did.

Knowing that Julie was safe, Rick made his move and began attacking Cyn. He was able to easily overpower him, knocking his gun away, and causing Cyn to land on the floor. He tried to get up, but Rick kept holding him down. In order to get him off, Cyn kneed Rick in the groin, which worked.

When Cyn got up, he gave Rick a disgusted look. "If there's anything left of that chunk you took, you better give it back, or else you'll be in a lot more pain."

Rick didn't take this threat seriously however. "K-Kinky. Is th-that really supposed to be a th-threat?"

This response completely baffled Cyn, who tried to throw a punch at Rick, but he quickly evaded it.

They continued fighting until Cyn remembered something, he didn't know who that strange girl was. The information he got on Rick made no mention of her, so he decided to ask. "Who was that girl?"

Rick instantly knew he was referring to Julie, and became enraged. "Leave h-her be."

Now Cyn knew that whoever that girl was, she must be important to Rick. "Why? Does she mean something to you?"

Rick wasn't going to take this, he started firing at Cyn rapidly, which scared him off enough to make him scurry off back to his ship and leave.

* * *

As soon as Rick knew Cyn was gone, he went over to find Julie, and eventually spotted her curled up on the floor of his lab. He sighed, he had really wanted for a better time to share his secret with her, but now it seemed he didn't have a choice. He helped her up, and she stared at him curiously. "What...what is this place? And why is there so much advanced technology here?" She asked intently.

"I'm...I'm a g-genius scientist and inventor. A-All of the advanced tech you see h-here, was made by me." He confessed bluntly.

Julie was in shock by this. She looked back at the inventions, before looking at Rick again. "You made all this? But how?"

"Told you," He chuckled. "Genius scientist and in-inventor, I also happen to be the smartest man in the u-universe."

Now she was in even more shock. "You are?"

"Yep, let me prove it to y-you."

Rick walked over to a blackboard, and Julie followed behind him. "I discovered the secret to perfecting interstellar travel, by making this.." He pulled out a container filled with a dark-coloured liquid. "And let me show y-you h-how I did it."

Julie watched, in a mix of awe, amazement, surprise and confusion as he wrote out an incredibly complex math equation on the blackboard. She considered herself fairly good at math, but even so, she couldn't understand or grasp the massive equation he'd wrote out.

When he finished, he turned back at her and was amused by the look on her face. "Well, do you believe I'm the smartest man in the universe?" He asked. All Julie could do was nod, making Rick laugh.

Now, Julie knew Mark's theory about Rick being a genius inventor was true, but was he tortured and lonely? She thought so, but she was still left with questions. "Why was that alien attacking you? Why did he want the fuel source?"

This was a question Rick couldn't bring himself to give her an honest answer to. Sure, he could tell her about him being a genius scientist and inventor, but not about being a criminal. Rick was sure if she knew the truth, that she would hate him and regret helping him. "It's not important right now."

"But Rick.."

"Don't ask anymore about this o-okay! J-Just.."

Julie felt hurt by how harsh he was being. Whatever the answer was, he wasn't ready to tell her yet. No matter how much she wanted the answers, she knew it was better to wait and not push him.

She left, feeling dejected, and Rick did feel bad for acting rude. He really was becoming more fond of her, and didn't want to ruin their friendship. He decided that tomorrow, he would properly apologize to her.

* * *

 **a/n:I thought it would make sense for a younger Rick to be reclusive, and originally was a loner. I also have Rick be messy, even though he's cleaner now, Julie will help him become cleaner, it's to show she still influences him.**


	4. Chapter 4

Cyn returned to Fyralog, feeling dejected and miserable. He had wanted to get the fuel source back from Rick, but it...hadn't worked out so well. Rick proved quickly how powerful, agile and aggressive he could be. But he wouldn't give up, he'd try and try until he got it back.

When he told Pyri about what had happened, she did not seem impressed. "You failed." She stated blankly.

"M-Maybe at my f-first sh-shot Your Imperial Highness…" Cyn stuttered. "But I won't do it again! I promise! Give me another chance!"

She thought about it, and gave in. "You've succeeded in catching criminals in the past...so I suppose I'll give you another shot, if you fail that one, I'll give you one more shot. But if you screw up all three? I won't let you help catch Sanchez anymore. Got it?"

Cyn nodded, then he remembered seeing Julie and decided to bring her up. "Hey, Your Imperial Highness? I saw a girl with Rick, and she wasn't mentioned in the info about him. Do you have any idea who she could be?"

Pyri was surprised. "That's...interesting...maybe she's his new girlfriend or something? Regardless, I wouldn't worry too much about her, unless she too proves to be a threat. If not, don't do anything, it would be pointless."

He grumbled, but accepted this anyways. "Fine."

At the back of his mind, her mere association with Rick made him distrust her, but he figured it was probably best to trust Pyri's advice. She had been alive for centuries, and him, only one. At the end of the day, he had a mission to complete, and he wouldn't let anyone interfere with that mission.

* * *

Julie had decided it would be nice to tell Mark the theory he had came up with about Rick was true, and also mention the fact she'd seen an alien of all things! She knew it would make Mark really excited to find out.

When she did tell him at her place, Mark grinned and pulled out a newspaper, the article at the front had the title _Possible Alien Aircraft Discovered_ in big bold letters. Underneath the title was a black and white photo of the ship Cyn had been in, someone must've captured it while Rick and Cyn were fighting.

"Julie, I can't believe it! You're hanging out with a guy who has not only met aliens, but fights with them too! This is amazing!" Mark exclaimed. "You should ask him to take you to space with him."

Julie blushed nervously. "Ah...I don't know...I mean...he was acting a little rude yesterday and I...I.."

"It's okay Jules," Mark assured her. "You can just get him to apologize, maybe taking you to space can be his way of apologizing."

Well, she thought he was most certainly right there. "That's good, the next time I see him, I'll see if he'll apologize, maybe I should too...I left without saying anything."

Before he could respond, Rick walked in. He initially had a smile on his face, but it soured as soon as he saw Mark. His eyes narrowed and he growled. "Who is he?"

Mark got up from the couch and walked over to Rick, reaching out his hand for a handshake. "Hiya! I'm Mark Norris, professional hippie."

Rick groaned at this. "A hippie? Seriously?"

"Mark..maybe you should go." Julie suggested. "I need to talk to Rick..alone.."

Mark winked at her knowingly, and walked out the door.

* * *

Julie took a deep breath and turned to face Rick. "I'm sorry about walking out on you yesterday without saying a word. It's just...you..umm.."

"You don't need to apologize for shit. I know I'm an asshole." Rick grumbled.

She gasped. "No! You...you're not..please don't talk about yourself like that."

"Don't, I am an ass a-and y-you k-know it. I was being harsh with you yesterday when I shouldn't have been." Rick insisted dismissively.  
Julie crossed her arms and looked down, unsure what to say. Rick noticed he seemed to have upset her, making him feel worse. He wanted to make her feel better, and soon, an idea popped into his head. "Hey, I wanna show you something."

Her interest was peaked as she watched him pull out his portal gun. "What is that?" She asked.

"This is what I use to generate portals, I call it my portal gun. With this b-baby, I can travel across the universe itself, along with other d-dimensions and universes that are out th-there." Rick explained.

Julie let out a small gasp. "Really? You can do that?"

"Well I did say I'm the smartest man in the universe did I not?" Rick winked.

She giggled and blushed a little, he did have a point there. "Can you take me to...another planet at least.

He grinned. "I was just going to do that actually, I have a place in mind where we can go."

"Really? Can you take me there now?" Julie questioned hopefully.

"Y-You bet we can." Rick said as he created a portal. He then proceeded to grab her hand and go through it with her.

* * *

The other side of the portal led to a rocky world, that had a river flowing through it and dotted with mountains. Julie looked around, thinking Rick would bring her somewhere beautiful, but still, she was on another planet and that was amazing anyway. "What are you going to show me here?" She inquired.

Without warning, he shouted out "Go go Sanchez wings!" And then out of nowhere, a pair of steel faux wings sprouted out of his arms.

"Wha..huh?"

"Come on my back, I'm gonna show you something."

Julie was hesitant for a moment, but quickly decided to go along with whatever he wanted, so she did as he said, gripping onto his shoulders. "What are you going to do?"

Wordlessly, Rick jumped and started to glide with his arms stretched out. Julie was in awe, watching as they flew together over planet's surface. She was so amazed, but also a little scared of falling down, so her grip on Rick tightened. "This a little ridiculous don't you think?" She laughed nervously.

"Sure it is, but you're having fun aren't you?"

"Of course! I just.."

"Scared of falling?" He guessed. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna let it happen. And even if you did fall, I'd catch y-you."

This comforted her, but she still had another question at the back of her mind. "How are we able to fly here?"

"Thick atmosphere combined with low gravity." He informed her. "Found out one day while fucking around, I thought coming here and doing this would make you feel better."

Julie's face went red, she was touched he had been thinking of her, and how to cheer her up. She stayed silent as they continued to fly, admiring the view as best she could. Slowly, her eyes began to close and she nestled her head against his neck.

Rick blushed and he became nervous, unsure what to feel. He started to sweat, trying to figure out what he should do. He decided they should go to another planet, one he had just remembered and thought she would like. Rick landed on the ground and gently put her beside him before shaking her to wake her up.

Julie fluttered her eyes open and looked up at him, a smile on her face. "Oh Rick..it's you.."

He laughed a little. "Y-Yea...it's m-me…" Then, he pressed his lips together. "I have another place in mind we can go, do y-you wanna see it?"

She got up at this, a big smile on her face. "Really? I'd love to!"

The expression on her face was so enthusiastic, she radiated with this purity and innocence...and admittedly...he was a little jealous...once when it came to the universe, Rick had this curiosity and innocence about the whole thing too, but it didn't last very long; it was then and there he decided he'd try and preserve hers.

* * *

When they arrived, Julie found herself in awe of this planet too. She could see various flowers comprised of nothing but crystals or gemstones, the grass was light purple, the rocks sparkled in the light of the sun, and the sky was a soft blue, reminiscent of the sky on Earth. She also spotted a waterfall that was a tangerine-orange shade. Seeing this place had her heart racing in excitement, and she had a big grin on her face, which Rick found amusing.

"Follow me." He said gently, walking towards the top of a nearby grassy hill. Julie cheerfully followed behind him, and they sat on top of the hill together, taking in the view.

"Oh Rick, this place is so beautiful! Thank you for taking me here!" Julie exclaimed, then proceeded to hug him.

Rick blushed furiously at this. "Gahh! D-Don't hug me, g-get off!"

She moved away a little, feeling hurt, her expression clearly showing this. Rick felt bad, and looked away momentarily. "I'm just...not used to being touched at all really...not like that I guess.."

Her face softened, and she gave him an understanding look. "That's okay, maybe...you'll get used to it eventually?" She spoke that last part in a shy voice, and Rick looked a little surprised.

There was some silence between them, until Rick decided to break it. "Hey, I have an idea, come with me."

Julie watched as Rick began to roll down the hill, she laughed and followed after him, doing the same thing. When they reached the bottom of the hill, Julie ended over top of Rick, both blushing like crazy. She slowly got up and inched towards the field of flowers. Rick was still in a bit of shock, but he managed to get up too and follow behind her.

She picked a few flowers up, admiring their beauty, the crystal and gemstone composition made them gleam in the sun, adding to their beauty. Rick watched her, and an idea popped into his head; he headed off for a brief moment, and picked out a flower resembling a red rose, made out of crystal, thorns and all. He picked the thorns out and headed over to Julie, who smiled upon seeing him.

He pulled out the rose from behind his back, and her eyes widened as he handed it to her. "Rick, it's so pretty! I love it!" She said gleefully.

He just grinned, watching how happy she seemed to be here. A few small creatures approached, and while Julie was eager to see alien animals, at the same time, she was a little unsure about something. "Are they dangerous?" She asked Rick, slightly nervous in tone.

"Naw, those little guys are harmless, y-you'll be fine." Rick responded.

Julie nodded her head in acknowledgement, and watched as one resembling a butterfly landed on her finger, causing her to giggle.

Rick watched her with the corner of his mouth rising, gazing at her from afar. He wasn't sure why, but his heartbeat became faster in his chest, and he felt a warm feeling within him. She looked so joyful, innocent and...beautiful. Rick snapped out of his thoughts, and eyed her again, he really needed to stop thinking like that or else it would get out of hand.

He sat down, just sitting away from her, feeling oddly nervous about getting near her. Julie took notice of this and walked up to him. "What's the matter Rick? Is everything okay?"

"Umm..y-y-yeah...everything is fine..n-no need to w-w-worry a-about me.."

Julie gave him a concerned look, and was about to hold onto one of his hands with her own, but stopped. "Is it...okay if I touch you this time?" She asked shyly.

Rick's eyes widened, and although he still a bit unsure, he decided to let her to avoid upsetting her. _Wait...why I am so concerned about making her upset?_ He thought in annoyance to himself.

"S-Sure...I-I-I g-g-guess sooo.." He agreed.

With his permission in mind, Julie locked their hands together and helped him up. "Is there anywhere else on this planet we can go explore?" She wondered.

"Yep," Rick confirmed. "Come on."

He led her to a cave, and when they went inside, it was covered with glimmering crystals sticking out of the walls, and even the floor of the cave was sparkling too. Julie jumped up and down and clapped her hands in excitement. They spent some time exploring the cave, until they left it, and saw the planet's sun begin to set.

"Should we get going now?" Julie asked.

"Y-Yep." Rick replied, watching the sunset.

"Everything about this planet is so beautiful..hopefully we can come back here eventually.." She murmured in awe.

"I'll make it happen, just y-y-y-you wait." He winked.

She beamed at this, and the two soon left through one of Rick's portals.

* * *

With the red rose in hand, Julie watched as Rick left back for his apartment. She gripped onto it, feeling a sense of sorrow as she watched him go. She wondered if she was starting to get a crush on him, and that wasn't a problem for her, Julie was more than happy to admit if she was starting to gain feelings for someone.

She went up to her room, and placed the crystal flower on the dresser, tomorrow she would get a vase for it. As happy as she was feeling, her insecurities were biting at her too. Julie remembered hearing Rick fighting that alien, and she had peeked at them too through the lab door. He was so strong, brave and confident, she could tell, and she wasn't like that at all. Julie couldn't fight, nor did she want to, and she saw herself as weak, passive and lacking in confidence. She admired Rick's strength and courage, and hoped her weaker personality wouldn't turn him away from her..

* * *

Rick was sitting in his apartment, feeling annoyed and aggravated with himself, he was frustrated that he couldn't get Julie off of his mind. He hoped he wasn't getting a crush on her, he wouldn't know what to do with himself if he stooped so low as to get a crush on someone of all things!

He grunted, trying to get some sleep, and eventually managed to do so. But once he woke up the next day, he realized he had ended up dreaming about her.

* * *

 **a/n:some more q and a:**

 **julie is a redhead, where did beth's blonde hair come from?**  
 **rick is a natural blond, nobody is born with blue hair**

 **julie is such a nice person, why is beth the way she is?**  
 **this will be answered as soon as beth enters the picture**

 **doesn't rick burp?**  
 **he's not an alcoholic yet**

 **also, if y'all wanna bitch about the romance tropes...eat my ass!**


	5. Chapter 5

The next day, Julie had went to get a vase for the rose as she said she would, putting it on her dresser and placing the rose in it. Considering the rose was made out of crystal and therefore not organic, she decided against putting water in it.

She admired the beauty of the rose, watching how it sparkled in the light of the sun from an open window. The memories of yesterday came flooding back at her, and her heart began to flutter in her chest. She had accepted she was starting to get a crush on Rick, admiring how strong and brave he was, and loving that he could take her to new worlds. At the back of her mind, Julie wondered if her feelings would go from just a crush, to full blown being in love, and if that turned out to the case, she hoped Rick would return her feelings, and their possible relationship would last.

Julie sighed, and decided to try and clear her mind of her worries by reading one of her books. Reading a romance novel, she figured, might only make her insecurities about finding true love come back to her, so she read something from a different genre, another favourite of hers, fantasy.

She continued to read her book, until she heard a knock at the front door. Getting up, Julie went over to see who it was, and when she opened, her heartbeat quickened upon seeing it was Rick. "Oh Rick..it's you!" She greeted with a shy smile. "What are you doing here?"

"J-Just coming over to stop by." He explained, not wanting to admit the real reason he was here was to see her again, wanting to spend more time with her.

She let him in, and he walked around for a moment, before something popped into his mind. "Do y-y-you have any nail polish?" He asked.

Julie gazed at him with a surprised expression. "Do I have any...what?"

"Nail polish. I was thinking we could paint our nails together."

"Of course!" Julie blurted out. "I um...I think that would be fun.."

He chuckled, and they went into the bathroom where she kept her make-up. Julie opened the cupboards and pulled out two bottles of nail polish, one blue and one purple. Rick grabbed the purple bottle, and they sat down on a rug. Julie reached out her hand, and he grabbed it before beginning to paint her nails with the purple nail polish.

Julie noticed he seemed a bit shy about touching her, his hand only just barely on her's. She knew he clearly wasn't used to any touching that was more….gentle? Maybe intimate in general, but she didn't know if he...was….sexually active, and even if he was, Rick didn't know what to do with this type of..affection. Julie didn't know why, and it made her worry for him, but she tried not to dwell on it. Right now, he was being nice and painting her nails, and she would relish on his touch for as long as she could.

When he finished, Julie was a little surprised at how well done it looked, and how neat it was. "You...you did a great job Rick! Have you done this before?"

"Yep, I have." He confirmed. "I've painted my nails black before a lot."

"Really? That's so cool!" Julie exclaimed. "I haven't heard of guys wearing make-up before, so it's...kinda neat you do."

"Well…" Rick blushed. "I just do whatever the hell I want, I've learned to stop giving a fuck about what people think of me, don't have the time for it anyways."

Now Julie saw that she found more things to admire about Rick, the fact that he did whatever he wanted without a care in the world, and he didn't care how people viewed him. She admittedly wished she could be like that, but she wasn't as brave or as confident as he was.

Julie then held onto Rick's hand, noticing his face was still red, then began to paint his nails blue. He kept his fingers steady despite his nerves, her touch was very soft and gentle, in fact it seemed like everything about her was like that too; Julie had a gentle heart, and the sound of her voice was very soft and quiet, her skin was soft and smooth too. He just let her continue to paint his nails, watching how calm and patient she was the whole time, slightly wishing he could be like that at the back of his mind.

When Julie finished, he looked at his freshly painted nails and grinned. "This looks great, almost as good as how I-I-I d-do it." He teased playfully.

Julie giggled, catching on quickly that he was teasing her jokingly, and playfully pushed him a little, making him laugh. "You look...well...umm..very nice. Blue looks really good on you…" Her own face went red as she complimented his appearance.

"And purple looks really good on y-you too, I can see why y-y-you w-wear it so much." Rick complimented back while winking.

Julie didn't know how to respond to his obvious flirting, and covered her face with her hands shyly.

Rick laughed and quickly pulled her hands away. "No need to be so shy, but you do look really cute when you're like this.." He grinned. Julie covered her face again, making Rick laugh more. "What? Never been called cute before? Because it is true."

"I guess I'm just not used to it...I don't know.." She muttered quietly.

"Well, I guess you'll ju-just have to h-huh?" He gave her a crooked smile, and sat up, Julie sat up too.

"I guess.." She replied. "By the way, I..um...wanted to show you something.."

He followed her to her room where she picked up the crystal rose in the vase. "I thought it would fit in a vase, so I bought one today." She explained. "It..doesn't need water does it? I mean...it's not organic, or at least I think so, so I didn't-"

"No no, it's okay. Y-You're right, it d-doesn't need water, it'll be f-fine." Rick assured her, causing Julie to breathe a sigh of relief.

Rick looked around a little, and he groaned upon remembering her collection of romance novels when he saw them again. Julie just smiled when she heard him, and walked up to him. "What's the matter Rick? Don't you like romance stories as much as I do?"

"No!" Rick hissed. "Love is ridiculous and pathetic; all it is, is just a chemical reaction in the brain, nothing more."

Julie wasn't phased by this, however. "Aw, you don't really believe that do you? Even if you're right that it is the result of a chemical reaction, it's much more complicated than that."

"It's not, when you supposedly 'fall in love', you're just doomed to be in an unhappy, failing marriage that you get stuck in."

Shit, he really wasn't kidding at all, he was being completely serious. Julie wondered why Rick had such a disdain for love, did he have his heart broken in the past or something? But then it hit her, what if Rick had never truly experienced what love is? He had cut off all contact with his family, he had trust issues, he was isolated and reclusive and he wasn't use to affection directed towards him. She didn't want to think about the possibility that Rick's parents had been cruel and abusive, never showing him any love or kindness, but it was a possibility she couldn't ignore. Her heart ached for him, and the thought of someone she cared for suffering so much was enough to make her cry.

"Rick..I just want you to know that you can trust me, you can tell me anything. We're friends aren't we? And I...I care about you...a lot. Whatever happened to make you think this way, you can tell me about it when you're ready." She said softly, looking right at him.

Rick gazed at her, feeling nervous, he wasn't use to anyone talking like that to him...being so kind and gentle...it was just so odd and strange to him. He wasn't sure how to handle this at all, so he began to leave the room. Julie sighed, feeling dejected he hadn't even given her a response, but she was hopeful he would tell her when he felt the time was right.

* * *

Rick eventually found the record player Julie owned, along with her records, impressed with her choice in bands, and decided it would be a perfect time to reveal one of his secrets. So, they went over to Rick's apartment, where, much to Julie's shock, Rick pulled out a guitar.

Julie gasped. "You play guitar?"

"Yep," He nodded. "Do you remember seeing that poster for the b-band 'The Flesh Curtains'? That's the band I'm a part of."

Now she was even more shocked. "You're part of a band? That's amazing! Who are your bandmates?"

"Two friends of mine named Birdperson and Squanchy. I play the guitar, Squanchy is drums, and Birdperson sings."

Julie could tell from the names alone that his friends weren't human, so while it seemed Rick was reclusive on Earth, she was glad to know he wasn't everywhere else in the universe. "Do you think..I can meet them sometime?" She asked.

"Sure, maybe-"

There was a loud crash, and Rick was annoyed to see Cyn in his apartment angrily. "This is already getting old.." Rick grumbled.

"Give it back Sanchez! I'm sure you still have even a piece left!" Cyn demanded.

Cyn noticed Rick didn't even budge, and well, he couldn't have that. He had to find a way to get Rick to actually do something, so he scanned around the apartment until his eyes focused on a clearly frightened Julie. Rick had hid her earlier, so he figured that he must care about her. He aimed his gun at Julie, watching as she started shaking with fear. "You give whatever you have left back, or your girlfriend here gets it." He threatened.

Rick stepped in front of Julie protectively. "You leave her alone, and….s-s-she isn't m-my…..g-g-g-girlfriend."

Cyn shook his head. "Tsk..tsk..you clearly care a lot about her, considering how protective you're being. You've given yourself a weakness! Ha! Most dangerous criminal in the galaxy my ass.."

Rick was enraged even further, and Julie watched from a distance as the two fought each other. Rick wasn't holding back at all, he was knocking Cyn down, punching and kicking him.

She remembered that thing Cyn had said about Rick being the 'most dangerous criminal in the galaxy', was it true? Julie couldn't stop thinking about it, if it was indeed true, she really wasn't sure what to think...they had good memories together already, she had a huge crush on him, and he treated her nice enough…

Her thoughts were interrupted when she saw Rick grab onto her and walk towards a wall. He pressed a button and much to her surprise, there was a ton of firearms that appeared underneath. Rick let go of his grasp on Julie, and strapped some of the guns on. Cyn sneered at him and Julie began to hide as the Rick and Cyn fired at each other, until Cyn managed to shoot Rick in the shoulder, making him grip onto and collapse to the floor.

Julie, in a state of worry and concern, wrapped her arms around him. Cyn approached them and pointed his gun at him.

Somehow, she was feeling a burst of confidence, and looked right up at him. "Leave him alone...please don't hurt him anymore.." She whimpered.

Cyn scoffed at this. "Really? You still defend him? Even after I said he's the most dangerous criminal in the galaxy? You must really care about him don't you?" He snickered mockingly. "Well you should know, he does whatever he wants, and by that I mean he steals and kills without a care in the world. He's selfish, he's destroyed a few worlds too. What makes you think he cares about you? He's been at this for only a few years, and he's already proved himself to be a huge threat. You shouldn't be doing this."

Julie took in his words, but really didn't know what to say, she decided she would talk about this with Rick when Cyn left. She simply sobbed against his shoulder, making Cyn roll his eyes and head off towards Rick's lab.

Rick had heard the things Cyn had said to Julie, but he had to felt too weak to speak up. He really hoped Julie didn't hate him now…he also had been glued to the spot because of how close Julie had been, how she'd held him and sobbed against him.

He managed to slowly get up and pressed his hand against the wall, and red button appeared. Rick hit it, and he and Julie heard a scream.

Out of the lab popped out Cyn, who had burn marks all over his body, and he hadn't been able to get what he came for. He tried to fight back against Rick, but was consumed by pain, and fled as fast as he could back to Fyralog.

* * *

After Cyn was gone, Julie sat Rick down on the couch and began tending to his wounds. Both were silent, unsure what to say to each other. Rick hadn't wanted to Julie to know the truth about him, but it was inevitable unfortunately. The fact she was still here and looking after him was a good sign though, he really wanted to remain friends with her.

When Julie finished, she focused her gaze straight at him, making Rick put his head down. "Rick please...it's okay.." She said softly, but he still didn't look at her.

Julie thought of all the happy memories she and Rick had shared, like when she'd rode on his back, or when they went to the gem/crystal planet, or painting their nails together. Even when Rick was still living with her, he'd never harmed her, at the worst he'd been rude initially, but it hadn't taken him too long to soften up. The more Julie thought about it, the more she knew that she couldn't hate him, she cared for him so much, he was her new best friend and crush after all. Though, the fact he killed people did bother her a little, and destroying other worlds...she decided she needed to at least ask him about that.

"Cyn said you kill people and destroy other worlds.." She murmured.

He sighed. "Not..i-innocent people, I wouldn't gain anything from doing that at all, they didn't do anything either. The people I do kill are those are get in my way, like they try and kill me first. When it comes to...destroying other worlds, I don't kill worlds that h-have people on it, I just kinda mess around with blank ones for f-fun." He then gave her a look that was basically saying 'please don't hate me'.

Julie trusted his explanation, he didn't seem to be terrible like Cyn made him out to be after all. She gave him a gentle look. "I don't hate you Rick, not at all. We're still friends, and I care about so much."

At this, Rick felt his heartbeat go faster, he didn't understand why he was so relieved that Julie wanted to remain friends with him, he just did…

"T-T-Thank y-y-you.." He smiled back, warming Julie's heart.

Rick got up, and clenched his fists together, he still was angered Cyn had threatened to hurt Julie, and he felt that, that blue asshole would come back at some point. They couldn't stay here, not when Julie was in danger, Rick didn't care for his own safety, he just wanted to be sure Julie would be okay.

Julie watched as Rick got out a bag and put the remains of the fuel source in it. "What are you doing? What's going on?" She asked.

"We're leaving Earth." Rick announced.

Julie's mouth hung open. "We're...what?"

"We can't stay here, not when you're in danger."

"But...my friends-"

"Will be fine," Rick finished. "He doesn't know about them, don't worry."

Julie was nervous about leaving Earth, but again, she trusted Rick and knew he was right about her being in danger, him too. So, she agreed to go with him off-planet.

* * *

Rick only carried some weapons with him other than the fuel source, but Julie had brought a lot, as Rick had told her he wasn't sure how long they'd be leaving. She packed up some clothes, hygiene products and books with her; she was going to bring food too, but Rick told her he had it covered. Before leaving, Julie had called Mark and Vivian to tell them she was 'leaving somewhere', they asked where, but she said she didn't know where, just that she didn't know when she was coming back. They were concerned, but Julie told them to not worry about it, and that she'll be alright, mentioning Rick was leaving with her, then hung up.

They left on Rick's ship, and when they made it out into space, Julie found herself completely amazed. She pressed her hands against the glass, and looked around to see the sights space had to offer. Rick watched her in amusement for a moment, before going back to piloting the ship.

Though, despite her curiosity and all, Julie was wondering about something. "Where are we going exactly Rick?"

"There's a planet called Glorf we can take refuge in. It used to be the home planet of the Glorfian Empire, rivals of the Fyralogins, even after the empire collapsed a long time ago." Rick explained. "That rivalry is still there, if we go showing the chunk of fuel I still have, they'll let us stay."

Julie nodded, and continued to look out at space again. She already missed Earth, but knew leaving as for the best.

When they arrived on Glorf, the citizens immediately aimed their weapons at both Rick and Julie, before Rick pulled out the fuel, making them drop their weapons.

"You have a part of the Fyralogin's fuel source! But why?" The clear leader of the group asked.

"I just took it to power some weapons, and now I got some asshat coming after me, trying to take it back. He's been annoying, and has been threatening her." He pointed to Julie upon saying the last part.

The leader nodded. "Do you want you and your girlfriend to take refuge here? We'd be more than happy to help."

"She's n-not m-m-my.." He groaned. "Yes.."

With that, both Rick and Julie were transported to a small town by Glorfian standards. "You'll be safe here," The leader said. "We will let you stay in a large house here, and if the Fyralogins come for us, we'll be ready."

Rick grinned, and looked over at Julie, who while still feeling nervous and overwhelmed by the advanced technology, did feel okay with this, as she had Rick by her side.

* * *

 **a/n:My thing with this series is to give it a completely different feel than the show. I use inspiration from real stuff in space(like the flying thing Rick and Julie did in chapter 4? it's theoretically possible to do that on the moon Titian). the aliens don't look as weird, and the names and planets themselves aren't as odd either. This is because of Julie's presence. with Julie the universe is a beautiful place, filled with wonder and excitement. Without her, the universe is horrific and deadly.**

 **Young Rick isn't as bad as rick is now, he hasn't been through as much, and hasn't gone down the deep end as much as Rick as now. That's why he acts a little different and is more easily trusting.**

 **Also, the facial hair I imagine young Rick having is the same kind one of Rick's younger clones had in "Big Trouble in Little Sanchez", the one I'm pretty sure is the young adult/middle-aged design(I say middle-aged too because Rick had the same haircut in his photo with baby Morty in "Get Schiwfty"). The hairstyle of that Rick is the same one he has in this story, but I always imagine him blond, with the exact shade being the same colour as Beth's hair. His facial hair too, if you can't tell is stray strands of hair in-between his nose and mouth, later on he makes it the same as his Flesh Curtains look, stray strands of hair on his chin.**


	6. Chapter 6

**a/n: nsfw warning below**

* * *

Julie looked out a large glass window in their new house, and was fascinated by the sight of this highly advanced alien civilization. This town was small and quaint, but still displayed just how advanced the yyorians were. The houses looked futuristic, being made out of chrome with their own glass windows. The house they were in also had advanced appliances and furniture, and even outside, she could see the other indications of how advanced they were, with their lights and cars that drove all by themselves. Out in the distance, she could still make out some elements of the planet's natural environment, being able to spot mountains.

One thing in particular that grabbed Julie's interest, was the fact this planet had two suns. She looked behind her for a moment, seeing that she had two shadows here, instead of only having one on Earth. She'd brought it up to Rick, and he explained the two were connected. Julie smiled to herself, thinking that if her friend Mark was here, he'd say something about the two suns on Glorf being like the two suns on Tatooine from Star Wars. Remembering her friend made Julie's smile fade, she missed him a lot, and Vivian too, she knew they were definitely worried about her.

But, Julie knew she had to stay here until the situation with the Fyralogin Empire had simmered down enough, to the point where she and Rick could return to Earth. By doing this, she also felt she was protecting her friends, if Cyn knew about them...she shuddered at the thought. It gave her comfort to know they would be okay.

Julie turned back over to see Rick, who was in the process of working on something, he'd started a while ago and hadn't stopped even once. She was concerned about him, knowing overworking himself like this wasn't a good idea at all, she had to do something.

She went up behind him and poked his shoulder, causing Rick to angrily turned around shout "What?!"

When he realized it was just Julie, a look of regret formed on his face, he felt awful for yelling at her, and her expression showed how hurt she was because of it. He sighed, and decided to try and apologize. "S-S-S-Sorry..ha...didn't realize it was just y-y-you."

"It's okay…" Julie responded. "I know you didn't mean it."

Rick pressed his lips together, eyeing her. "What is it that you want?"

Julie gave him a concerned look. "You've been working for too long, you need to take a break."

"Oh, y-you w-worried about me?" He asked jokingly.

"Of course I am!" She exclaimed. "Please, just try and relax, at least for a little bit, you need it."

Well, she did have a point, he was feeling very hungry, thirsty and exhausted after all; but Rick had been working on some important inventions, namely creating new powerful weapons to use. He had been so focused on them he hadn't paid much attention to anything else. He was glad she had been looking out for him, for some reason, it made him feel all weird inside, but he tried to ignore it.

"Alright," He agreed, getting up from his seat. "I'll go and get us something to eat and drink, be right back."

Julie watched as he formed a portal, and very quickly, she stared in awe as food and drinks popped out, before Rick himself did. "Dig in." He winked.

She grinned, and did so with him, realizing what he meant when he'd told her he had getting food covered.

A lot of what Rick had gotten was junk food, and while Julie was the type to prefer eating a healthy balanced diet, she didn't mind at all; Rick was here with her, and because of her growing feelings, she was more than happy to indulge in this with him. That, and she too was also really hungry and thirsty. So, she gleefully munched down on the food with him, finding herself amused when she saw him wolf down his food, and feeling so happy to be near him.

* * *

While they were in the midst of eating, a member of the inhabits of Glorf, the yyorians, appeared. "Rick Sanchez, Vrillon requests your presence, please follow me."

"Vrillon? Who the hell is that?" Rick asked in annoyance.

"He is the leader here, the one that greeted you and her when you two arrived here." The yyorian explained. "He is interested in talking more with you about your stay here."

Rick groaned. "Come on Julie, let's go."

The yyorian stopped them. "Your girlfriend is not allowed to go, only you."

Julie became panicked. "But..but I'm not used to this place! I won't know what to do without you Rick.." She even began to tear up a little.

He gently placed a hand on her shoulder, and began to try and comfort her. "It'll be fine, I'm sure I'll be back in no time anyways. T-This place isn't even that hard to figure out either, there's nothing for y-you t-to worry about."

She smiled, and hugged him without thinking. When she realized what she had done, she pulled away, only to see Rick was blushing and smiling at her.

"You didn't...mind this time?" Julie asked.

"It's okay," Rick replied, his voice sounding gentler and softer than normal. "I..I...I k-k-kinda l-l-liked it...a l-l-litle.." He slowly cupped her cheek with his hand, and Julie leaned into it, her face flushed.

The yyorian sighed. "We need to go Sanchez, it's urgent."

Rick rolled his eyes and followed the yyorian, glancing back at Julie one last time before leaving.

* * *

Julie's heart was still beating fast from how Rick had been so gentle with her, she figured he was getting used to her touch slowly, and it made her feel all warm and fuzzy inside. She loved the feel of his rough skin against her, and she longed for it once more. Julie pressed her hand against the cheek Rick had cupped, and sighed in content.

She really wished he was here with her, but still understood he had to leave because of this…'Vrillon' person. Julie felt nervous about the whole thing, but she knew Rick could handle himself, he was so strong, powerful, confident and brave after all; plus, there was the whole 'most dangerous criminal in the galaxy' thing.

In the meantime, Julie decided to see if she there was a type of refrigerator in here to put their food in. She knew Rick would be happy to know the food he'd been eating earlier hadn't gone bad, and she hoped to see a smile on his face.

Julie looked around in what appeared to be the kitchen area, when she stumbled upon a silvery-coloured fridge, and when she opened it, was huge and empty inside. She beamed, and went over to the were food was, carrying it over and placing it into the fridge before closing it.

She breathed a sigh of relief, although at the back of her mind she was still a little nervous she might have messed up a little...she really hoped she didn't..

Now that that was taken care of, Julie was stuck on what to do next. She thought about it a little, a decided on taking a bath. She figured it would do good for the stress she'd be dealing with slightly, and to calm her nerves and worries.  
Grabbing the hygiene products she brought with her, Julie looked for the bathroom, and found it, her eyes resting on a large, circular bath.

* * *

The yyorian led Rick to a desolate-looking building, instantly making him believe something was off, he was glad he'd carried one of his new weapons with him.

When Rick entered the building, accompanied by the yyorian, he was greeted by Vrillon, who had an entourage of some other yyorians with him. Rick narrowed his eyes at him. "What do you want?" His tone clearly showed how annoyed and angry he was.

Vrillon smiled at him. "So I hear you come from the planet Earth, and your girl too, how nice. I once tried to interrupt their tv stations but it didn't do much. Tell me, how are things going there now?"

"Shut the fuck up and tell me what y-you actually wanted me here for, a-a-and why wasn't J-Julie allowed to come?"

Vrillon shook his head. "You have quite the temper don't you? Well I have heard about how violent and destructive you tend to be, so this is no surprise. Anyways...I want to talk the fuel source piece you have."

"What?" Rick was confused.

"It's great how you're fucking over the fyralogins by doing this, and as one of the top members of the Galactic Command, I think it would be useful to take. They know you have it, but if you give it to me, they'll never know the truth, it'll trick them." Vrillon explained.

Rick got even more pissed. "And why should I trust you? I don't trust any type of government or any of their affiliates either, y-you're no different."

Vrillon realized that getting to Rick was going to be harder than he had hoped, he couldn't have that, and pulled out his gun. "If you don't give it up, I'll kill you, and your pretty little girlfriend too."

That was the last straw, Rick pulled out his gun, and shot Vrillon into nothing but tiny pieces.

* * *

Julie stripped naked and stepped into the bath, before sinking down into the warm water that now enveloped her. She instantly felt her stress and tension beginning to fade away, feeling much more relaxed and calm.

She felt that it wasn't enough though, she needed a little more to relax her further, and well, considering she was staying with Rick for an indefinite amount of time, Julie knew there might not to be too many chances she could do this.

Julie bit her lip, and let one of her hands trail her down her body, until she reached her sex, and began to stroke it. She used her free hand to caress one of her soft breasts all the while, unable to fight back her moans. Her legs naturally began to spread open as she pleasured herself, her pussy becoming soaked with need.

She then let out a soft moan. "Mmm...Rick.."

When she realized she moaned his name, she surprised herself, but didn't mind at all, considering her growing feelings for him.

A fantasy formed in her mind of Rick stripping naked himself, and joining her in the bath. She began to stroke her pussy again, imagining Rick touching her, fondling her breasts, stroking her sex with those long thin fingers of his. The thought of him doing that to her, made her more aroused and wet than ever.

She had never really thought of him...sexually before, but now that she had, she couldn't get enough of it, becoming consumed by her desire for him. Julie let out sweet moans, unable to stop thinking about the criminal mad scientist, wanting him with her.

Her mind wandered to thinking about Rick fucking her, taking her roughly while she begged for more. At this, her stroking became faster, and she now had her fingers on her clit. Julie could feel her orgasm coming, and when she did finally cum, she let out Rick's name on a loud moan.

* * *

The other yyorians stared in shock as they saw their leader was blown to bits. Rick gave them a menacing look, gun still pointed in the air, waiting.

One of the group members, an orange-colored yyorian named Oran, spoke up. "What do you think you're doing? You can't just kill our leader you asshole!"

Rick sighed, and Oran suffered the same fate as Vrillon. He looked at his gun, contemplating his next move, and deciding he couldn't let the rest of the group live, someone was guaranteed to reveal what Rick had done. With that, he fired at the rest of them, and when it was over, the room, and Rick himself, were splattered with blood.

He groaned, knowing he'd have to clean this mess up and hide the evidence. He quickly teleported to where his inventions were, and picked one up that could do the job. While there, Rick swore he heard distant moaning, but shrugged it off and returned back to the room. There, he removed all traces of blood from it.

* * *

Julie felt so wonderful after her orgasm, and stayed in the bath a little longer, content, before getting up and drying herself off.

It was getting late, so she decided to look for the bedroom, and found it, only to be completely embarrassed to notice there was only one bed, clearly meant for her and Rick to share. Everyone seemed to think they were together, and while it wasn't true, Julie didn't mind at all that people thought they were. She could only imagine what Rick would think about them having to share a bed.

Julie got up and put on her nightgown, before sitting down on the bed. She laid there, thinking about the man she was growing to love, and desire as well. She remembered the burst of confidence she had gotten when defending Rick from Cyn, and wondered where it came from. Then it hit her, what if Rick's confidence was rubbing off onto her? The thought of him bringing out the best in her was a pleasant one, and Julie also noted how filled with joy and happiness she would be with Rick around. Maybe it was true after all..

The bedroom door opened, making Julie put her head up, and turn back to see Rick. She got up and eagerly ran towards him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You're back!" She shouted happily. "How did...it go with Vrillon?"

Rick chuckled, amused by how enthusiastic she was, and also enjoying her hug, noticing he was becoming less nervous about her touch. "Not good, h-he demanded I give him the fuel source, and when I asked why I should trust him, he threatened me...and you too. I wasn't going to put up with that and so I had to...d-dispose of him and his goons." He explained.

"Well, I'm just glad to know you're okay." Julie replied, and looked back at the bed. "By the way, I stored our food in the fridge for you. Also, when I was heading off to sleep, I found they only have one bed, I guess the people here really do think we're together.." She laughed awkwardly.

He was glad to know she had stored their food away for later, but Rick's eyes widened when Julie mentioned there was only one bed. He glimpsed behind her, and saw it was true. "Fuck." He muttered.

"It's okay, we can still sleep as far away from each other on the bed as possible.." She assured him.

"Y-You're right," Rick grumbled. "I guess that's what we'll do."

Julie watched in embarrassment as Rick took off his lab coat, shirt and shoes before heading over to the bed. "Y-Y-You coming?" He asked.

"Right right..of course.." She mumbled, and headed over to the bed with him.

Having him so close was maddening, but she was able to keep herself together. Despite the awkwardness of the situation, she was able to fall asleep eventually.

Rick had also felt the same way, having to share a bed because he didn't tell them that he and Julie weren't actually a couple. He had been consumed by his odd feelings for her, and now was starting to realize those odd feelings could be..love.

Love..bah! If that really was the case, it pissed him off to know he had been so foolish as to allow himself to fall in love with someone.

But...he hadn't been able to help himself...Julie was so kind, beautiful, loving, sweet, gentle, understanding, thoughtful-

No! He needed to stop thinking like this! Love wasn't real, it was just a bunch of bullshit, and so were these new feelings...Rick just had to try and ignore them as best he could.

* * *

 **a/n: Vrillon is a reference to a TV hijacking on November 26th 1977, I couldn't help but do it.**

 **I also couldn't help but include the classic fanfic trope of having two characters share a bed, it just made sense, the Glorfians think they're together after all.**

 **Rick getting the food for him and Julie through a portal is a reference to when Rick did that for him and Ice-T in "Get Schwifty".**


	7. Chapter 7

When Cyn had returned to Fyralog, he had explained what had happened to him, making the mention he had almost got the fuel source, but Rick had burned him, literally. Pyri was becoming frustrated with Cyn, she was forced to watch her citizens suffer through an energy crisis with nothing much she could do about it.

"Remember Cyn, you have one last chance left, don't blow it." She reminded him. "You fail this time, and you're discharged."

Cyn was nervous about this, he so desperately wanted to help, so he didn't want to screw this up. "Can't you help me in any way? Get me some form of assistance?" He asked hopefully.

Pyri thought about it. "I suppose so, I'll assign some other generals to help you."

He grinned eagerly at this, hoping this new help would finally cause him to get that chunk back.

When the help did arrive, they were also hoping to get the fuel back, and Cyn headed off with them on their ships to Earth. However, when they arrived, Rick was nowhere to be found, not even his girl, and this confused him greatly. Using the tracker, it seemed Rick was at least near...Glorf. Cyn sighed, he didn't want to head towards enemy territory, but it seemed he and the other generals had no choice.

Cyn decided he couldn't risk it, and that he needed to come up with a plan. He and his generals stayed on their ship, figuring out what to do about Rick.

* * *

It had been a few days since Rick and Julie had arrived on Glorf, and they'd been spending most of their time together, not that they minded or anything due to their growing feelings for each other…it was mainly down to the fact both were unfamiliar with Glorf, and didn't know any of the inhabitants. Though Julie hoped that could change soon.

Morning came by, and Julie had prepared breakfast for the both of them using some ingredients and other such things from the leftover food, as well as more food Rick had gotten for the two of them. He was outside at the moment, so she set his food, including a drink, on a tray and headed out to see him.

She saw that he was testing the new weapons he made on some test dummies. Each of the dummies had appeared so far to either end up in pieces or not looking the…..most...flattering.

Julie smiled upon seeing him, she didn't want to distract him, so she set his tray of food down on the table his weapons were on and headed back inside were she took to eating her own breakfast. Not long later, she heard the blasts from his weapons stop, and peered outside to see him sitting down to eat. She was glad to see him eating, he had been overworking himself too much, never giving himself a break to eat, drink or sleep at all.

After breakfast, Rick popped back inside and smiled at her. "That was a pretty good breakfast you made by the way."

She couldn't help but blush at his words. "Thank you...and I'm glad that you finally ate and drank something, it's not good to overwork yourself you know."

He sighed. "Y-Yeah I know but..I just feel it's important to make all these weapons...if that blue asshole or any of the ot-other fyralogins come, we'll n-need to be a-a-able to protect ourselves properly."

"I understand..but taking breaks every once in a while is still important."

Rick didn't respond, just looking away for a moment. She had a point, but he was too focused on protecting her, keeping her safe from any harm that could come her way. He cared about her too much to let her get hurt, though he still was in denial of his feelings towards her.

When he didn't reply, Julie pressed her lips together and thought for a moment, before an idea came to mind. "Hey, why don't we go explore the town we're in together? I think it could be pretty fun, don't you?"

He perked up at this, a smile forming on his face. "Yeah...yeah that could be fun, if that's what you wanna do."

"Oh it is what I wanna do!" She exclaimed. "This is the first alien civilization I've been to, I'd like to explore it and learn more about it."

"Makes sense." Rick chuckled. "Come o-on then, let's get g-going."

* * *

Rick and Julie began to wander around the small town they were in together, taking in the sights, with Julie looking amazed the whole time, making Rick smile.

She had a strong curiosity for the universe, and he kinda admired it. Once, he shared her curiosity, and while he still had it in a way, it wasn't as innocent as hers was, Rick had become too jaded unfortunately. He didn't want the same thing to happen to her, so knew he had to preserve her innocence.

As they walked through the town together, they came across a building resembling a library. Julie's curiosity was instantly peaked, and she looked over at Rick and pointed to it. "We should go in there! It looks like a library, I bet there's so much to learn about Glorf there!"

He nodded, smiling wider at her. "Sounds good."

The two walked inside the building together, seeing that it truly was a library, and a very high tech one too. It had many advanced computers around, and Julie took notice of the fact the books were all digital. The library also featured a cafe and a place to relax and read.

Julie was a bit intimidated by how advanced everything was, it was different from the libraries on Earth, but in other ways, it was the same too, both having a very relaxing and homey atmosphere. It was strange to her...but nice, and she started walking around with Rick until she came across the "history" section. She picked one of the books and sat down on a cushion to read it. Rick wasn't interested in reading anything, so he just joined her on the cushion.

Both remained silent for a while, due to it being a library and all, even though Julie wanted so badly to gush about everything she was learning, she decided to wait until they left.

As they sat together, Rick looked around and noticed the yyorians staring at them, more specifically, him, and their glares seemed to be angry ones. Not that he blamed them, the higher ups loved having him here just to piss off the fyralogins, but the average yyorians clearly weren't too happy about a dangerous and notorious criminal hanging around. He could handle it though, people hating him? He was used to that. Rick would only have a problem with it if the glares were directed towards Julie, but thankfully, nobody seemed to be mad at her.

After some time passed, Julie noticed she felt hungry and stood up, seeing this, Rick stood up too. "What is it?" He asked quietly.

"I'm starting to feel a bit hungry, so I'm going to go get something to eat at that cafe." She replied, also quietly.

"I should come with you. You gotta know what's safe to eat after all don't you?"

She nodded, seeing that he was right. They were on another planet with aliens that most certainly had a different diet, and could potentially consume things humans couldn't after all.

Julie then walked towards the cafe, with Rick following her. Even as he walked, he noticed the angry glares never went away.

Upon arriving at the cafe, they both looked at the menu, and Rick helped single out what she was able to eat. She ended up ordering something resembling ice cream with whipped cream on top, and before she left, the yyorian behind the counter said something to her: "Careful being with...that guy.." They pointed towards Rick. "He's nothing but trouble."

Julie said nothing in response, just clutching onto her food and walking towards a table. Rick glared angrily at the yyorian before he sat across from Julie, both still silent.

She started to think about her feelings for him. Julie knew that she was falling in love, there was so much she found to admire about him, so much she liked about him, and there was also the way he never failed to make her laugh or smile. His presence made her feel warm and happy inside, and like all her pain and sorrow disappeared.

Because of all this, Julie also knew that Rick wasn't as bad as everyone made him about to be. Not once he had ever hurt her on purpose, and he was kind towards her too, not at first, but he quickly warmed up to her and had became increasingly nicer. She loved being around him too, and of course, there was her growing desire for him..

She let out a sigh, and slowly began to eat her food. Rick noticed she seemed upset, and hearing other people in the cafe talking, he decided to say something to her. "You okay?"

Julie looked up at him and nodded. "I'm fine, I just...can't stop thinking about the yyorian saying that you're nothing but trouble."

"W-Well…" Rick chuckled. "That's not entirely wrong. But don't l-let it get to you okay? Yeah I cause a lot of trouble, that's just who I am but…" A blush formed on his face. "I-I wouldn't let any trouble come y-your way."

She smiled. "I know, and I'll try not to let it get to me, as much as I can I suppose."

It was then she noticed her food came with an extra spoon, which was probably down to the yyorians thinking they were a couple. Julie picked up the spoon and handed it to him. "Want some?"

"Sure." Rick agreed, taking the spoon from her.

Deciding to make her feel better, they began to talk about other things, and Rick couldn't help but feel all warm inside whenever he managed to make her laugh or smile, but as usual, he tried to ignore it.

As they talked, something came to Julie's mind. "Rick...why were you so nervous about being touched and hugged in the past? I know your not used to it..but why?"

He gave her a surprised look, and she became flustered. "Ah I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have asked, I-"

"No, it's fi-fine." He interrupted, and sighed deeply. "I-I just...I-I-I…" He didn't didn't want to tell her 'why' yet. "..well..the only time I've ever been touched like that is..." He chuckled lightly. "..when I'm fucking, you know, with men, women, whoever I want. Outside of that? Nope, it's never happened, at least not until I met y-you."

Julie's got a deep blush on her face when he muttered out 'fucking', he was so vulgar! At least she knew he was sexually active, and it made her really jealous, wanting Rick to 'take her' too, but she said nothing about it.

Rick still didn't tell her why, and it made her suspect the worst. She did not want to think about the idea Rick was abused in his childhood, she considered it might be true beforehand, and now it seemed even more likely, and she hated it so much. Julie figured that Rick's parents must've been very unloving and unkind, very cruel, unsupportive people. It would certainly explain some of Rick's other behaviours too, like the fact he seemed untrusting of others and was noted to be violent, he was a criminal too. She wondered if Rick's parents were also tied to his rebellious nature, thinking maybe they were very strict.

Julie wanted so badly to ask him about this, but decided against it, figuring it was best to wait; she didn't want to feel like she was being insensitive, or stepping out of line or anything like that.

"I'm really sorry.." She apologized softly.

"No, don't be sorry, y-you d-didn't do anything wrong." Rick told her.

"It's just..I feel awful for you, whatever the reason you're not used to any type of affection can't be anything good." Julie admitted. " Is there anything I can do?"

"Well..guess you'll just have to make me used to it." He winked. "An-And I'm kin-kinda...starting to anyways."

She give him a gentle smile at this, feeling glad he was getting used to her affections.

* * *

After they finished their food, Julie rented a few books she liked, and on the way to their next destination, she went on and on about everything she learned. Rick wasn't very interested in any of it, but he just listened to her with a smile on his face.

The next place they went to was a theater, which was playing a movie featuring both action and romance, making it something Rick and Julie could enjoy together, which they did. Rick just grinned when he saw how much Julie was invested in the movie's love story, even if he hated romance. It was something she adored, so he tolerated it for her sake, feeling annoyed with himself for once being so rude about her love for it.

Once the movie was over, they decided to go explore more of the town the next day, but on the way back, Rick felt someone tightly grab onto his wrist, and he turned his head over to see an angry yyorian staring at him.

"I don't appreciate our planet harbouring a criminal like you, especially not one so notorious dangerous." The yyorian growled. "It could put our people in serious danger, and I won't tolerate it."

Rick rolled his eyes, and forcefully pulled off the yyorian before starting to walk away with Julie.

The yyorian glared at them menacingly, if Rick wasn't going to listen to him, then he was going to have to do this the hard way. Everyone knew the girl he was with was his weak spot, if he threatened her...well...Rick would have to listen to him then!

He grabbed Julie's arm and pulled her against him, placing a glistening knife against her throat, while she started to cry. "If you don't want your girl's neck to be sliced open, you'll listen to me, criminal."

At this, Rick was seething with rage. The only weapon he had with him was his own blade, but that was no problem. Before the poor yyorian even knew what was happening, Rick knocked him in the face, sending him flying. He then grabbed onto Julie, wanting to comfort her, but knowing he had to deal with the yyorian first.

When the yyorian got up, Rick stepped protectively in front of a frightened Julie, his eyes narrowed. The yyorian charged at Rick, who effortlessly stabbed him in the chest, causing him to cry out in pain and fall to the ground.

"Look at you.." He managed to say through the pain, clutching onto his chest. "You're one of the most deadly and feared criminals in the galaxy and yet...you've given yourself a weakness..your love for that girl...it's funny really.."

Rick had completely lost himself in fury at this point. "I didn't give myself a weakness!" He yelled defensively as he sliced the yyorian in two.

Julie had covered her eyes with her face, looking away. But when she did uncover her eyes, she saw Rick sitting on his knees, covered in blood….and she swore she heard him sob…she went beside him, and laid a hand on his shoulder to comfort him.

* * *

When they returned home, Julie and Rick were sitting on their bed, with Julie cleaning the blood off of Rick, who was looking down, neither saying a word.

Julie thought about the fact that yyorian had said she was "Rick's weakness", and she wondered if she really was. He cared about her more than anything it seemed, and he had only gotten angry when the yyorian threatened to kill her, they had also only left Earth because, according to Rick: "We can't stay here, not when you're in danger."

It seemed to really make sense, Rick prioritized her above anything and anyone else, and to be honest, it made her heart soar, knowing he cared that much about her.

At the same time, she felt guilty that others saw her as making Rick weak, she knew Rick didn't like it, figuring he didn't want to be seen as weak to begin with. Julie also felt guilty that she couldn't even fight, she couldn't defend herself, she had to rely on Rick to help her. She knew Rick's enemies could take advantage of this, knowing there was nothing she could do on her own, and she needed him. It's not like Julie could even stand up for herself to begin with either, she was passive and shy. She didn't want to constantly be a damsel in distress that he needed to save and protect all the time, she didn't want to feel like a burden to him, but she was starting to.

"Rick I.." Julie sighed sadly. "I'm...I'm so sorry...I must feel like a huge burden to you and.." She started to tear up. "...and that you must think I'm just a weak crybaby.."

Rick was shocked that she would even think of saying something like that to him. "Julie! Don't you dare fucking talk about yourself like that ever again! You are not a burden or a weak crybaby at all!"

Julie sniffled a little. "But..I can't fight, I can't stand up for myself, and so far, a few people who hate you have already tried to hurt me, and I can't do anything about it. I have to rely on you..and…" Her crying was starting to get worse. "I feel like I really am a crybaby, that's what everyone used to always call me growing up..you shouldn't have to deal with me Rick...you really shouldn't…"

He couldn't believe what he was hearing, he never thought she'd talk about herself like that. Rick knew now Julie was a very insecure person, lacking a lot of confidence in herself, and it seemed he knew where it came from, she was bullied in her youth. He knew her pain, having been bullied as a child as well, at least they had another thing in common. His anger was completely gone, and he softened, wanting to make her feel better again.

"Julie I don't see you as a burden, I-I…" He blushed. "I don't really say this to people but..I-I-I c-c-care about y-y-you a lot o-okay? We're friends, and I don't like you speaking so negatively about yourself. I want to deal with you and...look..I've dealt with bullying too, but you shouldn't let that shit get to you, ever."

Rick pressed his face against her cheek, and she blushed too, feeling touched by his words. She hadn't known he'd been bullied too, but she was glad he could understand her pain. This was only making the feelings Julie felt for Rick stronger, she felt the urge to hug and kiss him, but resisted as best she could.

"Thank you Rick.." Julie smiled. "I tried so hard not to let the bullying get to me, but I just dealt with it so much. The other kids would make fun of my red hair, or call me names like loser, weak, a baby and...as you already know...a crybaby..I'm not strong like you Rick, but I want to try and be."

Rick smiled back at her, hiding the fact he wanted to hurt everyone who had ever hurt her. "That's good. I know that shit hurts a lot, I was bullied for my looks too, the other kids would call me ugly, and make fun of my unibrow. I w-was also called things like a freak or a weirdo. At first, it hurt so much, but eventually, I stopped caring, and now I don't give one single fuck about what people think of me." He grinned. "A-And I hope you don't feel insecure about being a redhead."

"Why?"

"Cause I got a thing for them." He winked at her, making her face even more red, causing him to laugh."By the way, it's kinda amazing you still seem to want to be friends, even though it's putting y-you in a lot of d-danger."

"That's because I care more about you than my own safety." Julie confessed. "No matter how many times I get put in danger, I'll always want to stay your friend."

Despite Rick's surprise by her response, he was thrilled. He knew no matter what happened, he would always be there for her, and protect her from harm, the feelings he was developing for her also growing stronger.

* * *

 **a/n: I just wanted to have at least scene showing Rick being protective of Julie, I felt the need to.**

 **I decided to acknowledge Rick's pansexuality, it's kinda important. Julie doesn't even react to Rick saying he fucks both men and women, despite being from the 1970s, I guess it just shows how loving and accepting she is.**

 **There's not too much to say here, other than that I want these two to kiss and fuck already! Get it over with you fools! I love and hate writing slow burn at the same time.**

 **I also just want to say, i didn't want their love story to be just "girl saving guy", not that I have a problem with those stories, but I thought it would be more meaningful if they saved each other.**


	8. Chapter 8

**a/n: Something you may be wondering is, why give Rick and his wife such a healthy and happy relationship? He left her! Well..yea...but, Rick is an intergalactic criminal, and one of the most wanted and dangerous. Gee, I wonder why he left? HINT: Julie and Beth would be in danger. It's not implausible. In "The ABC's of Beth", Rick also says "..something about your mother.." to Beth, which confirms in my mind he still loves her, but why would he ever admit it? Yes he said his marriage was a failure in "The Wedding Squanchers" and "Rick Potion #9" but again, Rick is not emotionally expressive. He ain't gonna admit to being in love. I know my shit, when there was just Season 1 I watched that shit religiously. Same thing was Season 2. I also have watched Season 3 a lot too.**

 **warnings for nsfw content(no smut yet) and child abuse. otherwise, this chapter is pretty fluffy.**

* * *

Back on Earth, both Mark and Vivian had been worried sick for Julie, not knowing where she was and trying to look for her. Neither of them had seen or heard from her in over a week, and they hoped she was okay.

However, Mark had a pretty good idea of where Julie might be exactly, which he figured he should voice to Vivian.

"Remember how Julie said she was leaving with Rick somewhere?" He asked.

"And? What about it?" Vivian replied.

"Well.." Mark began. "The day after Julie and Rick left, I saw a newspaper article talking about the fact that the exact same alien ship had been spotted, in the exact spot as before, near Rick's apartment! I think Rick took Julie off-planet to escape that alien!"

Vivian groaned at this. "You honestly believe that nonsense?"

"The last time Julie talked with us, she said she was going with Rick somewhere, she didn't know where they were going, she just knew they were...going. Julie wouldn't just leave for no good reason, and she wouldn't lie either." Mark retorted.

He did have a point there, but she still thought the whole thing was absurd and nonsensical. "This is just too crazy to be true. Look, I've already filed a missing persons report for Julie, she'll be fine."

"I still wouldn't rule out the possibility Viv." He responded. "If I'm right, she'll be back in no time. Rick is gone too after all."

"But how do you know exactly she was taken to space? That seems really far fetched."

"After the first time that alien ship was seen, Julie told me that Rick really is a genius, he's able to make portals to different places in the universe! That's why I think he took her to another planet!"

Vivian sighed, it...did seem to add up...and neither Mark nor Julie were the type to lie about stuff, especially not something as crazy as this. Plus, there wasn't really anything else to go off of to find out where Julie is, and she wouldn't just suddenly run off on them without a good reason.

"But how can you be so sure?" She asked, not wanting to admit defeat.

"Trust me, she'll be back in no time! We just gotta wait.."

* * *

Rick was laying on the bed, his eyes shut tight and clawing at his pillow. In his head, a memory was being played in his mind, a very painful and traumatic memory from his childhood.

 _He was hiding under a table in his room, shaking with fear while holding onto a new invention he had made a couple of days ago. The invention allowed you to make things disappear with a press of a button, and he was very proud of it. But now Rick was clutching onto it, afraid out of his mind as he could hear his father's footsteps approach him._

 _"Ricardo!" His father yelled. "Get out here right now where I can see you!"_

 _Rick whimpered, not saying anything at all, and this only made his father angrier. "Niño estúpido! Get out here, right now!" He repeated._

 _His father entered his room, trying to look for him, until he peered down underneath the desk, and saw Rick. "There you are, and with another ridículo inventions of yours." He sneered._

 _Rick started to cry. "I'm sorry papá...I-I-I just.."_

 _"No excuses!' His father interrupted, and snatched the invention away from Rick. "You will stop making these things if you know what's good for you, they are a waste of time! You should be with your mamá and I on your knees praying! Instead your doing this! After this, I better not see you making any more of these."_

 _Rick's eyes widened as he saw his father throw the invention on the ground. "Please papá! Please!"_

 _His father ignored his words, and he screamed and cried as he watched the invention he worked so hard on, be destroyed right in front of him. His father wanted to take away any control Rick had in his own life, and that meant destroying things that were important to him, things he took pride in._

 _When it was over, Rick was dragged out from under the desk, his father holding him up and staring at him with rage in his eyes. "What does the Bible tells us Ricardo? Hmm? It tells us niños like you must obey your parents, no matter what we say or do, and from now on, you should remember your teachings and obey me by not making these inventions. Do you understand?"_

 _All Rick could do was nod, but his father still looked disapproving. "On Sunday, you're going to come with me and mamá to church, I expect to see praying to God for forgiveness, sinful niño." Hearing this, Rick's eyes widened, he absolutely did not want to be seen as sinful._

 _He then dropped Rick, and walked away. Rick stared at the broken pieces of his invention, and broke down into sobs._

Rick's eyes shot open, he hated whenever these old memories would come back to him, and he was forced to relive the abuse of his past.

Back then, he had been a sad, scared and lonely little boy. Combined with the bullying, his pain and misery was even worse, no love, no support or kindness from anyone, he only had himself. He had been so weak back then, and once he escaped his abuse, Rick swore to never let himself be weak again.

His parents had been heavily religious, and wanted Rick to be just as devoted to faith as they were, but even as a child, he was skeptical, and his parents didn't like this, he would be beat for daring to question their religion. They also discouraged his love and passion for science, and as in his memory, destroyed his inventions. He had been so scared of being seen as "sinful" and therefore bad, and damned for Hell. Despite becoming an atheist, and developing an immense hatred for religion, this fear was still ingrained in him...deep down..

He couldn't go to back to sleep now, and didn't want to risk waking up Julie, which is why he decided to get off the bed and head into the living room, where he sat on the couch.

His mind was consumed with his pain...and he was back to worrying if he really would end up in Hell, before attempting to shake it away. Rick needed to take his mind off all this shit and focus on something else.

Rick's thoughts turned to Julie, the only person to ever show him true care, love, kindness and understanding. She was always there for him, and he appreciated her so much, despite the fact he didn't think he deserved even an ounce of her kindness, he didn't believe he deserved anything good happening to him at all.

Julie was everything he wasn't, where she was kind and polite, he was rude and mean, where she was shy, introverted and bashful, he was loud, extroverted and outspoken. She was soft, innocent, gentle, mundane and simple. He was rough, jaded, dangerous, eccentric and crazy. They were polar opposites, she was light and he was darkness, it seemed so odd they got along so well.

But they weren't completely different, Rick had come to find they shared the pain of being bullied, they were both lonely, isolated people with not many close friends. There was also their families, Rick didn't talk to his anymore and Julie's? He...didn't even know, the only time they were brought up was when he asked if she had no family, and it clearly upset her. Before they'd left, Julie had only showed concern for her friends, not her family, it made him curious, and now that they were closer, he figured he'd ask her about it eventually.

They also both liked rock music, had a similar sense of humour, and liked similar foods. Rick had noticed Julie also showed an interest in his science work, space and learning new things, and it made him smile. He had so much to show her in the future.

He found himself thinking about her a lot, she wasn't like anyone he'd ever met, and there was also the feelings she had instilled in him. Rick was starting to finally come to terms with the fact he loved her, and it aggravated him to no end, he clenched his fists together and punched a couch cushion, angry with himself.

 _What are you doing you idiot?_ Rick thought to himself. _You're falling into the trap people call love! This is only going to end bad for you! He tried to relax, but he didn't know what to do with himself, it's not like Julie would ever love me back anyways. Julie is practically an angel, and I'm a demon, a freak, a monster. There's no way someone like her would love someone like me…_

Rick decided to turn to the feelings about her he was comfortable with, his lust. Since he first laid eyes on Julie, he had wanted her. She was so beautiful, and had a nice curvy figure, and was fairly busty too. Plus, being a redhead was a bonus, having a preference for them and all. But Julie wasn't the type of girl it seemed, to just give herself to anyone, he didn't even know if she had ever been with another man in that way. The thought of another man touching her and having his way with her pissed him off to no end, she should be all his!

Rick was use to one night stands, casual sex, hookups...that type of thing, he wasn't use to being intimate with someone in any kind of romantic sense, being with someone he actually cared for and loved...it would be so new to him. That, and he always been with people more sexually forward, which Julie was not, at all, but he welcomed it.

He had never wanted anyone like he wanted her, and the worst part was always being so close to her, getting to share a bed with her, but still unable to make her his. Julie was so sweet, so pure and innocent, he wanted to rip her clothes off, shove her down on the bed and fuck her like a madman, hearing her cry out for him.

Rick growled, feeling as his cock hardened in his pants, he knew it was because of her. For a moment, he fantasized about walking back into the bedroom, waking Julie up, and shoving his cock against her face, forcing her to suck him off. But he couldn't do that to her, and settled on reliving his tension himself.

He undid his belt and unzipped his pants, freeing his aching erection. He grinned, thinking about what Julie's reaction would be to seeing his cock for the first time, he was big and thick, and he could see poor Julie being intimidated by it, but quickly loving how it felt inside her.

He started to stroke his cock, pumping up and down, imagining it was Julie doing this instead of him. Rick moaned in delight, already starting to feel the pain and stress wither away from his mind, replaced by a primal lust and desire for her.

Another fantasy formed in his mind, this time of walking in on Julie naked, her being very flustered and embarrassed, and sucking him off after seeing how hard she'd made him, a way to apologize. Rick could only imagine how soft her lips would feel wrapped around his cock, and he stroked faster at the thought.

"Uhhh fuck.." He groaned. "Julie…"

Rick felt he would cum soon, feeling a pressure building inside him. He was sweating and panting desperately, and soon enough, his back arched as thick strands of cum were released from his cock, a loud moan escaping his throat.

Despite being satisfied, Rick knew it wouldn't be nearly as good as having Julie all to himself. He stretched out his arms, then zipped his pants back up and did his belt again before returning to the bedroom.

* * *

When Rick arrived back in the bedroom, he saw Julie awake, a concerned expression on her face. "Are you okay Rick?" She asked. "I heard you saying my name. I hope everything is alright with you.."

 _Fuck._ He thought. _She heard me, I fucking woke her up._

"Ah...y-yeah...everything is fine...no need to worry." Rick mumbled, dismissing away her concern.

But the worried look never left her face, she watched as Rick sat down beside her, and she placed one of her hands on his. "Something's wrong..please tell me what it is...you know you can tell me anything Rick, I'm here for you, I want to help you." Julie gently told him.

Rick bit his lip, wondering if he should tell her off all his pain and suffering in his past. Julie was so understanding and supportive, and his trust in her was stronger than ever. But at the same time, he had never talked about his abuse to anyone, not even Birdperson and Squanchy knew, and they were his best friends. There was also the stigma surrounding child abuse, that it was just punishment, that it wasn't real, he hoped she didn't buy into that garbage, but knowing Julie's empathetic nature, it didn't seem likely she would.

The more he thought about it, the more he decided it was a good idea. Besides, if he didn't tell her, she'd feel hurt, like he didn't trust her, and he didn't want that.

Rick took a deep breath, and began explaining his past to her. "I-I-I-I was...having a flashback to my childhood, which wasn't pleasant, at all. My...m-m-my father..he use to beat...m-me and destroy my inventions. H-He.." He started tearing up. "..he would say I was full of...s-sin, that I was a bad child...a-a-and...and I would go to Hell because of my love for science, and my skepticism of my parent's religion: Catholicism. My father always disapproved of everything I did, my mother wasn't much better, she neglected me and didn't give one single fuck about me. They were always so strict t-too.." Rick sighed. "When I was a teenager, I started rebelling and hated everyone and everything, I just..stopped caring about stuff, or at least I told myself I did. I only changed after I got drafted into the Vietnam War, and saw so much….s-s-suffering...around me. As soon as I came back to the States, I just went on my own and stopped talking to my parents. I don't know if they're alive or dead, and frankly, I don't give a shit."

Hearing all the pain and suffering the man she loved had to deal with, caused Julie to cry. She had guessed he was abused, but didn't want to believe it was true, and now she had confirmation from Rick himself that it was. She'd never guessed he was in Vietnam, but it did make sense considering his age. Her heart ached for him, and she wanted to comfort him, kiss him and tell him she loved him, but she still felt too shy and nervous to do the latter two things.

When Rick saw Julie cry, he was both surprised and worried, he had expected her to sympathize with him, but not outright cry. "Julie, don't shed tears for me, I don't deserve them."

"But you do Rick! You've suffered so much in your life, and I...feel terrible for you." Julie cried. "You're my friend and I care so much about you.."

"Ricardo.."

"What?"

"My real name...it's Ricardo, not Rick. Rick is just my nickname.."

Julie looked at him softly, wiping a few tears away. "Ricardo...I like that name, it suits you."

"I guess.." He chuckled nervously. "But it reminds me of my past, and so...I-I prefer to go by Rick."

"Well..maybe it'll help if I start calling you by your full name...Ricardo." She giggled.

Rick giggled back. "Whatever you say..Juliana.."

Julie laughed, and he got a devious idea, when she wasn't looking, he started tickling her sides, making her laugh more. "Oh! Ha ha! Stop it! Hee hee!"

She tried to tickle him back, but he pushed her down playfully. "You think you can defeat me? The master of tickling? You can try all you want, but you'll never be as good as me!" He boasted jokingly.

He wasn't paying attention, having his eyes closed, so Julie took the opportunity and tickled his sides right back. "Why you…" But he couldn't help himself and started to laugh. "Ha ha! I'll...ha...get you back for this!"

Rick tried to tickle her back, but she had him pinned down and he couldn't really move around. "Looks like I won after all!" Julie beamed. She took her hands away, and watched him get up.

"Heh..I guess y-you did..." He admitted.

She relaxed, and looked at him gently. "You feel better now?"

He nodded. "Thanks to y-you."

Julie blushed. "Um...I'm...I'm really sorry for everything you had to suffer through in your life, nobody deserves that. If you ever want to talk more about it with me, or anything else...I'm all ears.." Rick smiled at her sweetly, but then it faded, making her worry again. "Are you worried about having another flashback again?" He didn't say anything, and she pressed her lips together, looking nervous. "You can...sleep closer to me tonight...if it'll make you feel better."

Rick's face went red, but he did think she had a good idea. If he had her closer to him, then he figured he definitely would be more comfortable, and the flashbacks would cease; even if he did have one, she'd be right there. "Sounds...s-s-sounds g-g-good.."

They were blushing like crazy as they got under the covers, and laid close to each other.

An idea came to Rick's mind, he decided to show Julie just how much he appreciated her, but he wasn't good with his words, so he decided a gift would do. He wanted to make the gift a little more personal, so he decided he should make it himself instead of stealing something or whatever.

But what could he make for her? Well, Julie was very girly and feminine, so maybe...jewelry! Maybe he could make a pretty pendant necklace for her! As for the pendent's colour, well, Rick could tell since she wore purple a lot that it was her favourite colour, so he decided the pendent's colour should be a purple shade; he randomly decided to make it lilac-coloured.

Once he was sure Julie was fast asleep, Rick slipped out of bed and into the lab he had set up in the house. He spent some time working on the pendent for her, and when it was finished, he fell asleep from how tired he was.

* * *

When Julie woke up the in the morning, she found Rick wasn't in their bed, and instantly became worried for him. She got out of bed, and headed to the lab, thinking he might be there.

She peeked her head in, and saw him laying his head down on the desk, asleep. Julie smiled and walked over to him to wake him up, but before she did, she saw a lilac pendant necklace beside him and was curious, did he make that?

Julie shook him to get him up. "Rick...get up silly!"

Rick's eyes opened, and he instantly felt relaxed when he saw her. "Heh...must've been so tired that I fell asleep here.."

She chuckled. "Yeah...but..why did you leave to go to your lab?" She picked up the pendant necklace. "Was it to make this?"

"Yea.." He blushed. "I-I made it for you...i-i-it's uh...a thank you gift I guess...I-I-I w-was...inspired to make it after you comforted me last night."

Julie blushed as well, touched he would think to make something for her. "Thank you Ricardo...this is very sweet of you..can I put it on?"

Rick nodded. "Sure, go ahead."

He watched as she moved some of her hair away, to put the necklace on, and when it she did get it on, she held onto the pendant part with one hand. "It's so beautiful.." Julie remarked in awe. "This is the sweetest thing anyone's ever done for me, I can't thank you enough."

"It's nothing really.." He smiled. "But I'm glad you like it."

Julie wanted to thank him back for the gift, but she didn't know how. As she thought, a risky idea came to mind, but she really wanted to do it and take this chance.

Sucking in a breath, Julie leaned forward and kissed Rick on the cheek, her face red as a tomato. "That's my thank you gift back.." She shyly told him.

Rick breathed heavily, placing a hand on the cheek she kissed, his mind a blur. He hadn't expected her to kiss him, but he was overjoyed she had, at least on the inside. Her lips felt as soft as he imagined they would be. The kiss made him wonder if she felt the same way back, but he shook it away, Rick still thought she could never love someone like him back, maybe she was just being nice..

He saw she was walking away from him, her face still red and her arms crossed while she looked down. Rick walked up to her, smiling ear to ear. "You feeling shy about that kiss? Don't worry, I liked it."

"Y-You did?" Julie stammered.

"Y-Yep." He laughed, then they both heard his stomach growling. "I guess that's a sign to make breakfast huh?"

Julie laughed back. "I have an idea, why don't you help me make breakfast?"

"Ah..h-h-h-help you? I don't know..I'm not really much of a c-cook.."

"Don't worry, I said that you can help right? So it'll be the two of us making breakfast together, no big deal."

Rick was a bit hesitant, but he saw the big smile on her face, showing how eager she was for him to help her, and decided to agree. "Well...okay then…"

"Yay!" She beamed as she hugged him. "This is going to be so much fun!"

* * *

It was while trying to help her cook that Rick realized how skilled she was at making food. When he was trying to mix the batter for her, she very quickly he noticed he was going a little too fast, she stopped him and let him know that if he mixed too much, the pancakes would turn out flat instead of fluffy.

He watched as she mixed everything together so effortlessly, and found himself impressed. At the same time, Rick felt insecure about his own abilities, he was having difficulty with this, and she was not. Julie noticed this, and placed a hand on his shoulder, looking at him sweetly. "I can tell you're upset because you don't feel you're as good as cooking as me. But don't worry, I appreciate you helping me, I really do, it's...nice...having you here with me."

Rick still looked unsure, and Julie decided to help him out. She pulled out the vanilla extract and handed it to him. "It may not seem like too much, but putting in a teaspoon of it will add sweetness to the flavour. Every ingredient counts."

His frown turned up into a smile, and he took the vanilla extract from her hands. He put a little bit on a teaspoon like she said, and poured it into the batter. "How did y-you get so good at this anyway?" He asked.

"I've been doing this ever since I was a little girl. I would help...my mother...when she cooked or baked, and she started teaching me how to properly make food. In high school, they also had classes on it, and it kinda helped I guess.." She explained. "But it was mainly down to my mother."

From this, Rick could tell Julie must have a close relationship with her mother, or is it had? She had never mentioned her up until now, and he'd never even seen her before, or Julie's father for that matter. He assumed the worst, thinking something might've happened to them, but decided against bringing it up to her, worried about potentially upsetting her.

"Well no wonder you're so good at this, you've basically been doing this almost your whole life and I've only just started really!" Rick exclaimed.

"I guess I'll just have to teach you!" She giggled.

And that's exactly what she did, the rest of the time they continued making pancakes, Julie helped him out as best she could, like whisking the batter or making a well in the center of the flour mixture. When they reached the part of flipping the pancakes, Julie laughed and clapped as she watched Rick flip the pancakes into the air and catch them perfectly.

When the pancakes were done, they sat down and ate them together at the kitchen table. Julie savoured every bite of the pancakes, she had made them with Rick and so they were special to her. It meant a lot to Julie that he agreed to participate in something she loved with her. She wanted to do the same with him, like having him show her cool science stuff, like maybe getting to see some chemical reactions.

Every moment they spent together felt like a dream, or like a fairy tale to her. Julie had found someone that actually cared about what she liked, and even if he wasn't interested in something she was, at least he pretended like he did. The only exception was that Rick hated romance, so he didn't like her romance novels. But looking back, maybe it would be different next time, after all, they had gotten closer, and Rick was becoming increasingly nicer to her. Knowing of her own feelings for him, Julie really hoped he'd change his tune about love..

* * *

After breakfast, Julie decided to bring up her idea about him sharing some neat science stuff with her. "I was thinking perhaps...some really cool chemical reactions? I mean...we don't have to do that if you don't want to but.."

"No." Rick cut her off. "It sounds like a great idea, and in fact, I have some in mind you might like…"

Julie beamed at this, and excitedly headed off into his lab with him. Rick had her put on the proper protective gear, but when she asked why he didn't do the same, he told her he didn't care about his safety and was only concerned about hers. She was touched, but insisted he put on protective gear too, and he hastily complied.

"I think you're gonna like this one, the reaction is called luminol, it's a molecule that glows when it interacts with chemicals like hydrogen peroxide, which is what I'm gonna use." He announced. "Watch this."

He poured some hydrogen peroxide and iron into a container with luminol it, and she watched in awe as it begun to glow. "How does it do that?" She asked curiously.

"The hydrogen peroxide takes away some h-hydrogen atoms from the lu-luminol, creating a new form that reacts with oxygen, making it unstable. The molecule is glowing as it's in the process of trying to become more stable. You need a catalyst though to make it work, which is why I put i-iron in it." Rick explained.

Julie did her best to understand, and found she picked up on his explanation easily. She remembered she had done fairly well in science back in high school after all. She was nowhere near as smart as Rick, no one can be, but she was happy that she could follow along on his explanations and understand him, she could tell he truly loved what he did. Julie remembered that Rick said his father disapproved of his love for science and destroyed his inventions, and it made her heart ache for him, she couldn't imagine having your parents be so disapproving of something you loved.

They did a few more reactions together, before going to explore more places in town together(and Julie putting her new necklace back on, having to take it off earlier), like a park and a mall, which Julie loved due to how much she liked to shop.

When they returned home, they headed off to relax on the balcony of their house. Julie found herself feeling very relaxed sitting with Rick.

At the same time, something was gnawing at her that she couldn't ignore: she was homesick. Julie missed her friends, she missed her home, she missed Earth, she knew she couldn't go back, but she longed to regardless. It wasn't all bad of course, she had Rick with her, but still..it hurt so much to be away from her real home. She glimpsed back at Rick and sighed, and he could tell something was wrong.

"What's up?" He asked, concern in his voice.

"It's just…" Julie sighed. "I miss Earth."

"Oh...homesick huh?"

She nodded sadly.

"It's...d-d-don't think about it okay? We'll be back on Earth in no time, just you wait." He assured her.

Julie appreciated it, but it still bothered her, and as she watched the sun setting on Glorf, she thought about the sunsets on Earth.

* * *

 **a/n: Translations(might not be the most accurate since I used google translate):**

 **papá=dad**

 **mamá=mom**

 **niño estúpido=stupid boy**

 **niños/niño=children/child**

 **ridículo=ridiculous**

 **Oh boy, i have a lot to say...**

 **Firstly, I thought Rick being a victim of child abuse makes sense. I read up on some theories about Rick's childhood and it was perfect. I made Rick specifically have a Catholic upbringing, since I heard Rick was confirmed as Mexican and Mexico is highly religious, most people there are Catholic. This isn't a slant on Catholicism, though my mom grew up Catholic and was abused too, I just think abusive religious parents using their religion to control and manipulate their child is highly plausible. Rick's father saying that thing about children having to obey their parents is a reference to one of the Ten Commandants, it's this one: "Honor thy father and mother." I think the Bible also has a ton of shit on it too. I know it doesn't specifically say anything about obeying, but it was what was on my mind while writing that scene.**

 **I also thought Rick still having the fear of being seen as sinful and stuff would explain things like when Rick had sacrificed himself for Morty and when he saw the collar, he was babbling about God, or when we saw another version of him praying for Hell to be merciful towards him. Would explain his hatred for religion(and tradition?).**

 **And Rick's full name being Ricardo makes sense too(he is Hispanic-Latino after all). i always thought it made more sense than his full name being Richard.**

 **Having them share their interests and become closer was important to me, I really wanted to show how compatible they truly are with each other, and it makes their romance more believable.**

 **The pendent idea seems random but I read up on theories and saw one where Rick gives pendents to the important women in his life. Diane has one, Beth has one in the Simple Rick commercial from "A Ricklantis Mix-Up". He also asks Supernova about a pendent in "Vindicators 3: The Return of Worldender". I saw that theory and thought it made perfect sense, so I included it.**

 **also, i had to look up a pancake recipe and chemical reactions for this, you're welcome.**


	9. Chapter 9

**a/n: nsfw warning ahead.**

* * *

Julie was laying on her bed, thinking about Mark and Vivian, she missed them both so much and longed to see them again. Tears formed in her eyes, she knew they must be so worried for her and miss her too.

She was at least glad Rick was with her, she loved him so much, but without her friends, Julie didn't feel she could truly be happy. But would Rick even allow her to go? She would understand if he didn't want her to, but still, at the back of her mind, Julie hoped he'd let her.

Rick walked in the bedroom, and his heart broke seeing her so upset. He went over and sat on the bed with her. "Y-You okay?"

Julie sat up and sniffled a little. "No...I want to go back to Earth and see my friends..please? Can you let me go? I promise I'll come back."

He sighed. "Julie, you k-know that blue asshole is out there looking for us, I can't just let y-you-"

She started to cry. "I'm sorry..I won't bring it up again.."

Rick couldn't say no to her like this, despite his concern that Cyn would find them, he was also more worried about Julie's wellbeing. "Alright...fine…"

Julie lit up and hugged him. "Oh Rick! Thank you so much!"

He chuckled, as he pulled out his portal gun. "I won't...limit how much time you can be on Earth, all that I want is for you to promise you'll come back."

"I told you, I will." She smiled. "I just need to see my friends and let them know I'm okay. Once I think everything is good, I will come back. I….couldn't stay away from you anyways, even if I wanted to.." She blushed.

He was surprised by this, and blushed too. "Well..um…" Rick put in the coordinates to Earth(also making sure to tell her Glorf's coordinates) and handed the portal gun to her. "Just...just take it.."

Julie took it, and pressed a round black button, causing a glowing green portal to appear. Before she left, she kissed Rick's cheek shyly, and then was on her way.

Rick watched as the portal disappeared after she entered it, a hollow and empty feeling overtook him, and he wondered if it had to do with the fact she was gone. He felt so...lonely now, he already missed her so much. Rick knew though, that this was what was best for her, and her friends could know she was safe with him.

But at the same time, he didn't know what to do now that she was gone, the house felt gloomy and lonely without her. He didn't want to stay here if she wasn't with him, so Rick decided to go somewhere else and fuck around until Julie came back. Rick didn't have his portal gun, so he decided to stay on Glorf, maybe he'd go look for some trouble…

* * *

Back on Cyn's ship, his tracker was setting off, and one of his goons went to check, and became shocked. "Cyn! Come look at this!"

Cyn walked over, and was intrigued. The tracker still couldn't properly lock onto Rick's location, but it showed where Julie was, she was on Earth. "Hmm...I wonder what she's doing there? Maybe she felt a little homesick.." He chuckled mockingly. "I bet when she comes back, we can use the tracker to finally lock onto where Rick is. Imagine how betrayed he'll feel that she led us right to him!"

The goon gulped. "What are we gonna do when we find them?"

Cyn smirked. "Just wait and see.."

* * *

When Julie arrived back on Earth, she was in her house again, right in her living room. A wide smile appeared on her face, she was so ecstatic to be back home! She did miss Rick already, but Julie knew she'd see him again soon, which comforted her.

She walked up to her phone and dialed Mark's number, all the while thinking about how excited he would be to hear her voice again.

"What's up dude? Whose this?" He asked.

"Mark! It's me, Julie!" She responded cheerfully.

Mark gasped in shock. "Julie? Is it really you? Did Rick take you off an a space adventure?"

She giggled. "Yes it's really me, and he...sorta did I guess. We had to leave Earth and go to another planet called Glorf, and it has a highly advanced civilization there! It was really cool. The planet also had two suns...like.."

"Like Tatooine from Star Wars!" Mark exclaimed. "That's amazing Jules! Did you have fun there?"

"Yeah.." She blushed. "Rick and I spent a lot of time together..and well...I...I think I'm in love with him.." As she said this, Julie twirled her fingers in her hair.

"Oh, I see.." Mark grinned mischievously. "So, do you think he's the one for you?"

"Mmhmm.." She admitted. "He's funny, strong, brave, smart and so many other great qualities...and he treats me so well. We have so much in common. I feel...so happy when I'm with him.."

"This is fantastic! Listen...we'll talk more about this soon, I'll tell Vivian you're here, and come over to your house. I'll bring a surprise if you want!" He beamed.

"That sounds good." She agreed. "I can't wait to see you two again! Bye!"

"Bye!"

Then he hung up, and she put the phone back. Julie didn't know what the surprise would be, but she did know Mark, and so figured he'd bring food.

Now that that was taken care of, Julie had to figure out what to do in the meantime. She thought for a moment, and decided to read one of the books she hadn't taken with her.

Julie headed into her bedroom, took out the book, laid on her bed and began to read to herself. As she read, she found her mind began focusing on Rick, even while separated she couldn't stop thinking about him…

She had never met anyone like him, and found the dangerous type of aura he had going on….very attractive, if she was being completely honest, and she didn't know why. Maybe it was not knowing just how powerful and capable Rick truly was. She found it thrilling. Julie remembered seeing him fight Cyn, or when he'd killed that yyorian to protect her. He'd also mentioned that he "disposed" of Vrillon and his goons, which told Julie he'd killed them, and she knew it had been to protect not only him, but again, her as well. The more time she spent with him, the more she figured she'd get to see how deadly he could be. She didn't even approve of violence to begin with, being a pacifist and all, so she didn't understand why she wanted to see that.

Julie wondered what the extent of his abilities exactly was, maybe Rick could take over Earth if he wanted to without even trying, or maybe the galaxy, or perhaps...the universe itself. She just didn't know, but if he was powerful enough to do all that…

She bit her lip, he was so feared and hated for a reason after all. This was all making her feel so heated, again, it confused her.

She rubbed her legs together. Release was what Julie needed, right then and there.

Before the only thing with Glorf, Julie found herself masturbating a lot, longing for the touch of a male(she wasn't as innocent and pure as she seemed), but not just any male, she had always had herself set on losing her virginity to the man she deemed her true love. The more Julie thought about it, the more she wondered if Rick was her true love, her soulmate, and even if he wasn't, Julie was becoming more sexually frustrated and starved, she needed him, badly. Maybe when she'd return to Glorf, she'd tell Rick how much she wanted him.

But she was so shy, timid and bashful, she couldn't, no matter how much she longed for him. Touching herself was the next best thing.

Julie put her book down and took off her short dress, leaving herself in a pair of lacy white panties and a matching bra. She laid back down, and moved her fingers into her panties, and she began stroking her wet pussy.

"Oh Rick.." She moaned. "Please don't stop..please…"

Julie hoped Rick wanted her too, she remembered him saying he was sexually active, that he had sex with both men and women, was he bi? Not that she minded...Vivian was too after all. It told her that he must be really good at sex, and maybe he was really...big...down there. She could only imagine pulling down his boxers and getting to see his massive erect cock for the first time, she'd never sucked on one before but she'd try her best to make him feel good.

She stroked herself to the thought, picturing herself sucking his cock, hearing his moans and making him cum all over her. Then, he'd spread her legs open and lick her pussy, she bet he was an expert with his tongue. After that, he'd put his cock in her warmth and make her his.

"Mmm oh yes Rick..yes!" Julie cried out. "I love you so much..."

She quickly came, feeling so relaxed afterwards, but not satisfied, she needed to have him with her.

Julie sighed and put her dress back on, before putting her book away. If Rick really wanted her, he could've easily seduced her by now. Why would he want her of all people anyways? She wasn't even that attractive, and she was weak and pathetic. She was just a normal girl, and he was a genius scientist who was incredibly powerful, he would never bother picking her in a million years.

It was then she heard the doorbell ring.

* * *

Rick was wandering the barren and desolate parts of the small town he and Julie were staying in. Trouble wouldn't be too far away, he knew he'd find it soon.

But as he walked around, he noticed people either were staring at him in fear, or ran away at the sight of him. He sighed, guess he just had to keep walking.

Eventually, he heard an angry voice behind him.

"I know you killed Vrillon." It spoke darkly.

Rick turned around, to see a female yyorian glaring at him with hatred in her eyes.

"Oh gee, how could you tell?" He joked.

She didn't find it very funny. "You walked into that building with Vrillon and his men, only you came out."

He grinned. "And what do y-you think y-you're gonna do a-a-about it?"

"Kill you."

Rick sighed in annoyance, and as she charged towards him, Rick used the same gun to kill Vrillon and his goons on her, exploring her into scattered pieces. Screams were heard around him, and he shook his head and continued walking.

* * *

Julie let her friends in, and smiled knowingly when she saw Mark carrying two boxes of pizzas in his hands, while Vivian just looked baffled when she saw Julie.

Mark set the boxes of pizzas on the coffee table, and the three friends sat on the couch together.

"Sooo...tell us about what's going on between you and Rick.." Mark winked.

Julie blushed, brushing her fingers through her long red hair. "Well…we've been getting along really well. Rick was a bit..mean..to begin with, but as we've grown closer, he's been treating me better and better. A few days ago, we spent some time exploring the city on the planet Glorf, that we were staying in, and I had a lot of fun." She decided to avoid bringing up the fact someone tried to kill her, it was best they didn't know. "He was a bit grumpy when we went to a park, but I managed to cheer him up and make him smile, then everything was smooth from there. Just yesterday, Rick helped me make pancakes, and in return, I had him show me some chemical reactions. He also made me this last night."

Julie pulled out the lilac pendant, and put it on. Mark was staring at it in awe. "Wow! It looks beautiful!"

"Why did he make that for you exactly?" Vivian asked, munching on a slice of pizza.

"Last night I.." Julie paused. "He wasn't doing so well, so I comforted him. He made this for me as a thank you gift. But that wasn't the only time I comforted him, I've done it before and I would do it again. I think this necklace isn't just a gift for the one time I comforted him, but a culmination of all the times I did so."

Mark 'awwed', but Vivian just sat there. When Julie had first talked about Rick, she'd brought up to her the possibility that Rick could be a criminal, and it still bothered Vivian at the back of her mind, she needed confirmation from Julie herself.

"So, tell me Julie, now that you've gotten to know Rick better, I need to know, is he a criminal or not?" She asked.

Julie hesitated, knowing Vivian wasn't going to like her answer. "Yes..he is.." She braced herself for Vivian's reaction, which was a simple "Hmm.."

"But that doesn't make him some kind of irredeemable monster. He's my friend, I care so much for him, and I know he does too! It doesn't matter to me what anyone says about our friendship either." Julie continued, before Vivian could say anything else.

Vivian remained silent, so Mark spoke up. "You know Julie, I think it's great you've grown close with someone else...and you did say on the phone that you think you love him too huh?" Vivian's eyes widened at this, but she still just sat there.

"Its true.." Julie admitted softly.

"I can also see you're a little more...outspoken?" He pointed out. "I wonder who caused that?"

She gasped in realization. "Rick...it's because of him...he must bring out the best in me.." Her heart fluttered, and she felt so warm and cheery inside, perhaps she and Rick were meant to be together after all..

"Have you told him your feelings yet?" Mark asked curiously.

Julie shook her head. "No, but I want to. I'm just...too shy…"

"Julie...it really isn't a good idea to be with a criminal. It could be really dangerous for you." Vivian warned.

"I know..but I'll be okay." She assured her. "I get that you're trying to look out for me, but I don't need you to. Rick is incredibly powerful, he can protect me from any harm, and I know he would never hurt me. He cares about me."

Vivian sighed, and Julie said nothing, she anticipated this reaction from her. She decided to had to say more about Rick.

"The pendant isn't the only gift he's gotten me. Before we left for Glorf, he gave me a rose made out of crystal."

"That's so cool! Where is it?'' Mark asked excitedly.

"In my room." Julie replied.

She continued to talk, filling in to her friends more about what happened. But she could tell Vivian was getting annoyed, and then she brought something up.

"Julie, what exactly are some of the crimes you know Rick has committed?"

Julie was afraid of this question being brought up, she should've seen it coming, and there was no way to avoid it now.

"Um...well...he's a thief, he's...assaulted people before...and…" She bit her lip, so hesitant to reveal his most heinous crime. "He kills people..not innocent people! But...he has killed before."

That set Vivian off, and an enraged expression appeared on her face. "What the hell are you thinking Julie? Not only are you getting involved with a man that literally _murders_ people, but you're falling in love with him too! You keep this up and you're going to get yourself _killed_!"

Julie fought back her tears, some new feeling was consuming her, and she had to let it out. "I don't care what you think! I love him and I care for him more than anything! I'm going to keep staying around him and being there for him when he needs me! And there's nothing you can do about it!"

While Mark was shaking, not liking hearing loud yelling, Vivian was taken aback. Julie realized what she said, so she covered her mouth, feeling incredibly guilty. "I'm so sorry...I don't know what came over me I-"

"I don't what to hear it." Vivian interrupted. "If you want to let yourself love a murderer, and die because of it, that's your choice and I can't stop you." She then got up and started to walk off.

"Wait...where are you going?" Julie asked.

"Leaving. Goodbye Julie." Vivian answered coldly. She then slammed the door shut.

Mark sat up, and sighed. "Let me go talk to her." He walked towards the door, and glimpse behind him to look at her. "You can keep the pizza!" Then he was gone.

Julie broke down into sobs, she felt so terrible and upset at herself for losing her temper like that, a rare thing for her to do. She didn't even know what caused her to do that, normally she would have just cried, but instead, she had been brave this time.

She understood why Vivian was so angry with her, she cared about her and didn't want her to get hurt, but it didn't soften the pain she felt. Vivian had always been looking out for her and protecting her, for as long as she could remember, like the fact Vivian stood up for her when she got bullied. Julie hoped to reconcile with her friend eventually, but things needed to cool down first. She hated that Vivian disapproved, and saw Rick as a monster, but Julie felt it was because Vivian didn't know Rick as well as she did. But even if she did grow to know him better, she'd never get over him being a murderer.

All Julie wanted was to be with Rick again, so he could comfort her and make her feel better. She had not expected to come back so early, but decided it was better than staying behind. Julie also had all the pizza left, which had barely been eaten, she also decided to bring it with her, it just had to be heated up a little bit.

Julie picked up the portal gun, and used it to create a portal to Glorf. She picked up the pizzas and headed through.

When she returned, Rick was nowhere in sight much to her dismay. Julie sighed, and heated up the pizzas before going back to the bedroom by herself.

* * *

Rick was on his way back, feeling bored, he hadn't found as much trouble as he hoped, and he supposed killing that yyorian had scared everyone away from him.

Once home, he smelled pizza, and was surprised, had Julie come back? He peeked in the bedroom, and saw her munching on a slice of pizza, a depressed look on her face. Rick hadn't even expected her to come back to him, but was grateful she did. Seeing her so upset told him something must've happened with her and her friends, and it hadn't been anything good.

"J-Julie? What happened?" He asked, his tone showing his concern.

She looked up at him, and tears began to well in her eyes. Rick sat next to her, and Julie went over and embraced him tightly, crying onto his lab coat and shirt.

Rick didn't know what to do, he had never had to comfort anyone before, and that's what Julie needed right now, comfort. He awkwardly patted her back, and rubbed it a little as she continued to sob.

"You can tell me what happened, it's fine." He assured her softly, not sure what to else to say to her.

Julie pulled away, gazing right at him. "It's just…" She sniffled. "Everything was going well with my friends until...my friend Vivian asked what some of your crimes were. When I said you killed people, she got mad and yelled at me, and I can't believe it, but I yelled back, and she left..I just..I even tried telling her you don't kill innocent people but.."

"Shh..don't worry about it.." Rick interjected. "Some people can't be reasoned with, i-i-if someone's charging at you with a weapon are y-you just supposed to take it? No, because that would be stupid. I've seen a lot already, the type of things that would keep any normal person up, and the more insane shit you get exposed to, the m-more desensitized you become. The universe is huge, in the grand scheme of it all, some things don't matter as much as we think they do."

Julie appeared confused. "What do you mean?"

"It's better you don't worry about it okay?" He told her, and then looked over at the pizzas. "Oh y-you got pizza?" Rick grinned in delight.

She smiled weakly at him. "Yea...my other friend Mark got some and said I could have it. Do you want some?"

"Of fucking course I do!" He beamed, and indulged in some pizza with her.

Julie was still a bit confused by Rick's words, but as she thought, she realized that he must've seen so much since he started exploring the universe, and she couldn't even imagine all the horrible things he's witnessed. Julie knew of his past abuse, his loneliness and misery, but she thought there must be other things making him suffer inside, and it made her worry for him, more than she already did. But for the moment, she tried to put it behind her and just...be with him. Having him close made Julie realize something, she felt at home with Rick, she needed him right by her side to be happy, and it warmed her heart.

After finishing the pizza together, Julie threw out the boxes and headed into the bedroom with him. He blushed, as she hid into the closet to get changed, while he just took off his lab coat and shirt. Julie popped out in her nightgown, and they laid on the bed together.

Rick could tell something was still biting at Julie, and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "You okay?"

"I'm okay..just.."

"Whatever it is, don't think about it, you'll be fine."

Julie realized his words "don't think about it" must be what he tells himself to deal with his suffering, the things he sees. It wasn't a healthy way of coping at all. "But isn't it good to think about your problems at times?"

"No!" He insisted. "Because i-i-it ju-just.." He started to trail off.

"It's not healthy to push your problems aside, if you want to talk, I'm right here, you know that."

Rick didn't know what to say, his heart was pounding and his feelings for her were coming to the surface. He furrowed his brow, and stared at her, he had to confront these feelings, right now.

With that, he grabbed onto her arms and pulled her in for a kiss on the lips. Julie was surprised, but she closed her eyes and quickly melted into it. She could feel a spark, and in her mind, it confirmed that her and Rick were meant to be. His lips were rough and cracked, while hers were soft and smooth, they always remained such a contrast to each other.

When Rick pulled away, Julie was in a haze, she didn't know why he'd kissed her, but she enjoyed it, it was the best kiss she'd ever had. "Rick..why did you...kiss me?" She asked.

He snickered. "It doesn't matter, don't think too hard about i-i-it."

He went to sleep not long after, but Julie couldn't go to sleep herself, the kiss kept crossing her mind. Why did he do it? Did he...love her? No...he couldn't...he'd never..

Whatever the reason, Julie decided to relish in it, and when she did go to sleep, her dreams were quite pleasant.

* * *

Cyn had been using the tracker, and now, he was finally starting to be able to pick up on where Rick was: Glorf.

It was just as he had expected at it annoyed him, the yyorians were the enemies of the fyralogins, and it had been that way for thousands of years. How was he and his goons going to get in?

An idea formed into his mind, the fyralogins naturally had the ability to shapeshift, so all they had to do was disguise themselves as yyorians...it would be perfect!

A serious expression appeared on Cyn's face as he stared at Glorf, he was going to save his people, no matter what.

* * *

 **a.n: I know I already had a scene of Julie masturbating, but I included another one because i felt the need to elaborate more on Julie's sexual feelings towards Rick. Poor Julie, she doesn't seem to realize she has a thing for dangerous men.**

 **Vivian comes off really nasty here, but listen, what if you found out your friend was friends/in love with a literal murder. Can you really blame her here? Honestly?**

 **Also wanted to show just how terrifying Rick truly is, he kills someone without a second thought.**


	10. Chapter 10

Even during the next morning, Julie still couldn't stop thinking about the kiss she and Rick had shared, it always kept crossing her mind and she couldn't stop it from doing so.

In her dream last night, Julie had dreamt of the two of them, relaxing in a field of flowers, the sunlight bathing their skin. It was like that time they were on the gemstone planet together, as they were having fun and doing things like rolling down hills. Rick had also given her a flower to put in her hair as well. Julie blushed, remembering that the dream had ended up in them having sex...well, at least it was happening in her dreams.

She settled on voicing her desires after confessing her feelings, but something bothered her, would Rick even accept her confession and return her feelings? She doubted it, fearing instead Rick would reject her, and it would ruin their close friendship, which is not at all what Julie wanted. As a result, she attempted to put it off from her mind.

As for Rick, he'd been glad he had finally confronted his feelings, it felt like he could still feel the kiss on his mouth, how soft her lips felt against his...he really wanted to do it again, and it's not like Julie had pushed him away, she'd accepted it happily. He did feel bad that he basically forced her to kiss him, it had been a spur of the moment thing, so Rick decided if they were to kiss again, he'd ask her first.

Today had seemed fairly normal, Rick and Julie ate breakfast as usual, and they sat together, feeling relaxed and content. Julie could tell Rick felt a little awkward, as result of the kiss, so she leaned forward and kissed his cheek, before giggling. He blushed, and grinned widely at her. "You sneaky little...come here.." He playfully grabbed onto her and tickled her sides.

"I surrender!" She laughed, and he let go, still grinning.

When the laughter died down, Rick's grin had softened into a gentle smile. "I-I-I'm...s-sorry...by the w-way...for kissing y-you last night…"

She gasped a little. "Oh don't be, it's alright. I...I really liked it...a lot…"

His eyes widened. "Y-You did?"

"Yep, you're...a really good kisser.."

Rick smirked. "Well I don't mean to brag but...I bet that was the best kiss you'd ever had huh?"

Julie blushed shyly. "It was…"

He chuckled, feeling proud of himself. "Honestly, I'm surprised y-you've kissed before, who was the first? Some pathetic ex-b-boyfriend of yours?"

"Yeah.." She sighed. "Nobody would've wanted to kiss me beforehand, they only would've done it on like...a dare...or something.."

Rick stopped smiling, and his expression become one of worry. "Oh...cause you were...bullied..right?"

Julie nodded sadly. "I remember when I was little, and had a crush on a boy at my school. When I gathered the courage to tell him I liked him, he acted all grossed out, called me ugly and laughed at me..and I ran off crying.."

"If only that kid could see you now.." He smirked. "He'd regret ever calling someone as beautiful as you, ugly."

Her face went red. "You think I'm...beautiful?"

"Of course I do, why wouldn't I?" He asked, as if it was obvious.

She turned her head away, and Rick suddenly understood, a solemn look on his face.

Julie turned her head back, focusing her gaze on him. "I remember feeling so worried I would never find a husband when I grew up, I thought no one would ever love someone as ugly as me."

"Julie…"

"When I told this to my….my parents, I was assured I was a beautiful girl, and my husband would be the luckiest man in the world. It helped softened the ache initially, but in the long run, all the bullying took its toll on me I guess.." It was then that Julie nestled closer to Rick. "I don't want to be alone...I don't..." As she told him this, he saw a few tears streaming down her face.

He felt so awful for her, hating that she clearly didn't see herself as beautiful due to all the bullying. In his eyes, she was the most beautiful being he had ever laid eyes on, the most beautiful sight, nothing in the multiverse compared to her beauty. Rick decided he had to let her know, for her sake.

"Julie, you should know...not only do I think you're beautiful, I think you're the most beautiful...p-p-person..in the entire m-m-multiverse. Nothing I've ever seen, across space and the dimensions, across all o-other universes, compares to y-y-your beauty, inside and out." He confessed, blushing like crazy.

Julie's heart was beating intensely from his words, she could tell from his gentle tone that he meant every everything he said. She didn't know what to say, until she decided to tell him how she felt. "Oh Rick...I.."

All of a sudden, there was a knock at the door.

Rick's mood soured, and he became enraged. Julie watched as he headed over to the front door and opened it, only to be greeted by a cyan-blue yyorian, with a few others behind him. Rick raised a side of his brow, instantly becoming suspicious.

"Who are you?" He growled.

"Oh uh..um..well...we've been asked to come inspect your home, make sure everything's in order.." The yyorian lied.

"Really? That's strange...nobody's ever come for any inspections until...just now.." Rick pointed out.

The yyorian became flustered, knowing already he'd been caught...he should have known better than to try and fool the smartest man in the universe. Why did he ever think this was going to work?

With that, he shifted back into his normal form, revealing it was Cyn. Rick narrowed his eyes and rushed over to protect Julie, but Cyn fired a weapon at him that stunned him momentarily, and he was forced to watch as Cyn grabbed Julie's arm and teleported away with her.

Rick got up and snarled, angry at himself for letting Cyn and his goons get away, now he was determined to find Julie and rescue her, and he thought he had a pretty good idea of where they were…

* * *

Rick used his portal gun to arrive at the planet Fyralog, and noticed it looked like a mess. There was rioting in the streets, people fighting, looting and the air was thick and hard to breathe. He sneaked past the fyralogins, and headed to the largest building, where he knew the empress Pyri lived. Since Cyn was trying to get the fuel source back, he thought perhaps he was working for her.

When he entered the building, there were guards everywhere, and Rick wasted no time killing every single one of them. He sneaked around carefully afterwards, and came across a small room, where he could hear Cyn talking, and went closer to listen.

"She won't cooperate sir...she's refusing to tell us anything.."

"We can't have that, the girl has to tell us something…" There was a pause. "What do you know about Rick?"

Rick braced himself for Julie to answer, but she remained silent, much to his surprise.

"Fine, if you won't speak, we'll have to make you speak."

Rick wasn't going to just sit there and let them hurt Julie, he burst into the room, and knocked away several of Cyn's goons with ease. He glared at Cyn, his anger only intensifying when he saw the electrical whip in his hands. "Let her go." He snarled.

Cyn glimpsed over at Julie, who seemed more than excited to see Rick was here to save her, before looking back at Rick himself, and sighed. He released Julie from her confines, and she immediately went over and embraced Rick in a tight hug. "Rick...I was so scared...I thought.."

"It's alright...I'm here…" He assured her softly.

Cyn groaned. "Alright, break it up you two."

Rick glared at him in annoyance, which Cyn ignored. "I have a deal to make with you Sanchez."

Rick pulled away from Julie and walked up to him. "What is it?"

"If you want me to set Julie free, so she can return to Earth and life a normal life, all you have to do is agree to let me torture and kill you. It's a fair price to pay for what you've done to my empire. The damage you've caused is irreversible after all."

Julie was horrified by this, she turned her head over to Rick, but noticed the expression on his face was emotionless. He couldn't do this! She didn't want him to die….she didn't want to lose him...she couldn't bear the thought..

To her horror, Rick simply uttered out "F-Fine."

He didn't care for his own life, Julie was far more important in his eyes, although at the same time, he knew he could escape. The pain he would suffer would all be worth it, as long as she would be safe and out of harm's way.

Julie ran up to him and grabbed onto his arm desperately. "Please! Please don't do this Rick! I.." She sucked in a breath, she had to tell him now, before it was too late. "I love you...I don't want you to die...please.."

Her confession shocked him beyond belief, she actually did love him? It was so strange, but Rick knew he didn't have much time to ponder on it right now. He clutched onto her hand, and leaned in close to her ear. "Don't worry about me, I'll get out." He whispered.

Julie still seemed upset, and it hurt Rick to see her so upset. Because of her confession, Rick decided it was time for him to reveal his feelings too. He sighed. "Julie...I...I-I-I love y-y-you too."

She blushed, her heart beating fast, overjoyed inside that he loved her too. She placed a hand on his cheek, her blush intensifying. "Can I kiss you?" Julie asked shyly.

He nodded, and they shared a gentle, loving kiss, before she pulled away. "Why did you kiss me last night anyways?"

"I wanted to confront my feelings, I was angry with myself for falling in love and wanted to do something about it." Rick confessed. "I hate that I let myself love you, but I-I don't hate you...I know I'm an asshole, and that you deserve better than me a-anyways."

Julie gasped. "That's not true..I love you, and I only want to be with you. Please don't do this, I'm not worth it."

Rick was surprised by this, how dare she talk about herself that way? She was worth more than anything in the multiverse to him. "Julie! Don't ever talk about yourself that way again! You're worth more than anything to me! I know that you love me, but you don't need me, you'll be alright."

"But Rick, I do need you, I-"

"Rick, you should know, I would never have found you two if it wasn't for her." Cyn interrupted.

"What?" Rick asked, a bit shocked.

"Her leaving Glorf is what allowed me to find you to begin with."

Rick looked back at Julie for a moment, and sighed. "No, it was my fault. I let her go."

Cyn chuckled. "Well isn't this interesting? Guards, take the girl back to Earth. My work here is done."

His goons obeyed, and dragged Julie away as she reached out for Rick desperately, but he just stood there looking solemn.

As soon as Cyn knew she was gone, his gaze focused on Rick, and became one of malice. "Let's begin."

* * *

 **a/n: They've finally confessed their feelings! After all this wait! There's still one thing left they have to do though..**

 **We all know Rick would be fine, but i think this was really important to include, it proves how selfless Rick can truly be, and how much he cares about Julie, how much she means to him.**

 **The torture won't be graphically described when it pops up in chapter 11, don't worry.**

 **Another thing I wanted to bring up is the young Rick seen in "The Rickshank Rickdemption". He appeared in a comic too apparently. If that is Rick's canon younger version(which doesn't make much sense to me), the Rick/Julie dynamic is ruined. It doesn't work anymore. To counter this, Rick is never refereed to as "C-137". He could end up being a different Rick. Knowing Rick and Morty, this shit canon somewhere.**


	11. Chapter 11

**a/n: warnings for nsfw content and a mild torture scene.**

* * *

Cyn had kept Rick chained up in the same small room Julie had been in, all alone, except for whenever someone would come in and torture him. He didn't try and fight back, he just took it, he had already dealt with so much pain in his life, that this was nothing in his eyes.

All Rick could think about was Julie, he hoped she was alright and that Cyn had kept his word, otherwise...he'd pay dearly. He still couldn't believe that she loved him, that a sweet, innocent, beautiful, angelic girl like her was in love with him. Rick didn't believe he deserved her love, she was too good for a monster like him. Regardless, he was ecstatic she loved him back, and he couldn't wait to see her again.

He remembered Cyn telling him that Julie leaving had allowed for him to him. Rick had a hunch that would happen if he let her leave, but despite knowing this, he didn't really care. It would've been boring staying on Glorf much longer.

Rick heard the door to the room open and saw one of Cyn's goons come in. "Cyn told me to give you a few shocks, sorry about that." He informed him.

He sat in silence, until the lever was pulled down, and he screamed as he felt the shocks hit his body. The goon was silent too, he pitied Rick a bit, then pulled the lever back up, before pulling it down again, and then back up. Once it was over, the goon left, leaving him alone.

* * *

On the way back to Earth, Julie had pleaded with the fyralogins to allow her to return to Glorf to get her things, which they hastily agreed to, turning into yyorians beforehand. While there, Julie had also secretly packed up Rick's weapons, she trusted him, and was sure he was right when he said he'd be okay, and knew he'd want the weapons he made back.

Despite her trust in him, she couldn't help but worry, even if he did survive, he still would face torture regardless, and the thought alone ate her up inside, she was worried for him. It comforted Julie to know Rick loved her back, his selfless act of sacrificing himself for her proved that to be true, all she would have to do now is wait.

When she returned home, all Julie wanted was to be alone, she was so scared for Rick and was consumed by her thoughts, knowing she had caused Cyn to find them didn't help. She called Mark to tell her she was home, but wanted to be alone, he respected this, but still seemed worried for her.

Julie laid on her bed, a few tears streaming down her face, without Rick, she felt so alone, so miserable and depressed.

She was so scared of being alone, her biggest fear was being doomed to a life of loneliness and isolation. Julie had always been an outcast, she would spend recesses at school reading books or playing with Vivian, her only friend as a child. She was a redheaded girl with skin pale and white as snow, it made her stand out easily among the other children, combined with inability to stand up for herself and being physically weak, she was a target of bullying often.

In fact, the only reason she and Vivian had became friends in the first place was because their mothers had been best friends themselves, and she only knew Mark to begin with because of Vivian too. Julie had actually met her first boyfriend through Vivian as well, they had attended law school together. Vivian had decided to help Julie out by introducing him to her. She'd been interested, but the spark had quickly faded, he turned out to be too uptight for her taste. Her second boyfriend had been met through Mark, he was some guy Mark had befriended, and apparently after showing him a picture of Julie, the guy was immediately interested. But again, the spark had quickly faded, this time it had been because the guy didn't care for her interests and thought she was too weak and passive. She was never able to meet people on her own due to her shyness. Even when she had jobs, her shyness was a big problem, and when it came to her dream job of being a nurse, Julie was too nervous to actually apply for the job to begin with.

But Rick had been someone she'd met all on her own, someone who she hadn't even considered dating initially, however, a spark, a connection hadn't taken long to form between them. Julie had been worried about Rick seeing her as weak, and was so grateful he cared for her interests because of her second ex. Rick was special to her, and she loved him more than life itself, if she lost him...no, Rick was strong and brave, he would live, and they could be together for the rest of their lives. The hope helped her, but the worry still remained, deep down inside her…

* * *

It had been a few days since Rick's torture had begun, and he was still thinking of how he would eventually escape.

He didn't need to think too much longer, as the door opened and Cyn walked in with a knife in hand, Rick decided he should find a way to get the knife for himself and break out of the chains.

"Today's the day Sanchez, I'm finally going to kill you, all by myself.." Cyn told him as he approached.

Rick narrowed his eyes, deducing what to do. Just as Cyn was about to stab him, Rick kicked him away and grabbed the knife in the air with his teeth. He cut at the chains and they broke(the fyralogins obviously wouldn't use an ordinary knife), freeing him. Rick got up, keeping the knife in hand, and as Cyn got up, Rick kicked him back again, knocking him into a hard metal object which rendered him unconscious.

With Cyn out of the way, Rick opened the door, and was greeted by guards. "Drop the knife!" They yelled.

He rolled his eyes, and used the knife against the guards, killing them easily. In order to escape, he knew had to kill even more, which is exactly what he did, with no second thoughts.

When enough guards were dead, Rick scanned around and found his lab coat and shirt, the former of which had his portal gun in it. Using it, Rick returned to Earth.

* * *

He arrived in front of Julie's house, and noticed it was dark out, the only light coming from the moon and a few stars speckled in the sky. All the lights in her house were off, indicating she was asleep. Rick felt bad about waking her up, but at the same time, he knew once she saw him, she would be overjoyed. He was covered in blood and numerous injuries, which might scare her, but he could easily explain it. He was particularly annoyed that he didn't have the invention that could clean the blood off him in a flash.

Rick got in and walked upstairs into her room, where he found her fast asleep. She looked so peaceful, so serene, so beautiful, she was his sleeping beauty.

He shook her to wake her up, which worked. Julie sat up and rubbed her eyes, and when she saw Rick, tears of joy formed in her eyes, and she hugged him. "Rick! You're...you're alive...you're okay.."

"Y-Yep." He grinned. "Nobody could kill me, no matter how hard they tried."

She pulled away, and noticed all the blood and injuries on him, a concerned look appeared on her face. "Oh dear...I'll have to do something about these..be right back.." Julie headed off to get her first aid kit, and when she returned with it, began attending to his wounds.

Rick sat in silence as she cared for him, he was still thinking about her feelings for him, and decided when she finished, he'd ask about them.

When she finished, Julie had done as much as she could, she'd wiped the blood off him, and and tended to some wounds and injuries, but she could only do so much. On Rick's back, there was still marks from where he'd been hit with the electrical whip, and much of his back was covered with electrical burns. He also still had faint scars on him and a few other burn marks too. Staring at his injuries, Julie could only imagine all that he'd suffered while being tortured, and it hurt her so badly inside.

Rick sighed in content as Julie trailed a finger on one of his scars. "I caused this.." She mumbled.

"Julie, don't blame yourself for this, I don't really care Cyn found us. I would've died of boredom if we stayed on Glorf much longer." He assured her.

His response made her blush, and she was grateful Rick wasn't angry with her.

She was done with his wounds, so he decided to bring up his question. "Julie...I-I just...I-I-I don't understand..w-why do you love me, of all people?" He asked. "I-I-I don't g-get it.."

Julie looked up at him and smiled, blushing. "It's simple really, you're a brave, assertive, confident, strong, charming and funny guy, you treat me so well, you're very kind and sweet with me. I love going on adventures with you. You bring out the best in me, I feel so...happy...when we're together, and you care about the things I like. I've realized that I need you to be happy...and that I can't live without you either…" She then gave him a curious expression. "Why do you love me?"

Her words surprised him, especially those last ones. His heart was pounding in his chest, and his cheeks were flushed, it was all so unbelievable. Rick gathered himself together, and answered her question back. "I guess it's because...well...y-y-you're...di-different, I've never met anyone like y-y-you. You're k-kind, sweet, caring, gentle, soft and...s-s-so many other things..you've treated me...better than….a-a-anyone else ever has, and...I..I don't know...I'm not..I'm not good with this shit okay?"

She laughed softly. "It's okay...I get it.."

"You always do." He smiled.

Julie blushed, and pressed her hand on his strong muscles, gazing at him. She leaned in close, and Rick took it as a sign she wanted to kiss him. He placed a hand on her cheek and kissed her gently, but there was also a hint of passion.

When he pulled away, Julie gazed at him again. "Are we...together now?"

He shrugged. "Sure."

A big smile appeared on her face, and she kissed him. Her fingers trailed down his back, and the kiss deepened. In response, Rick let his hands slowly caress her back, and slipped his tongue in her mouth, making her let out a moan. Julie pulled away for air, and noticed their tongues were connected by a string of saliva.

Rick smirked and pulled her in for another kiss by her arms. Both of them began to let out soft moans as the kiss deepened and became more passionate. They felt their bodies heating up as they kissed before pulling away again. Rick then began to trail kisses down her face all the way down to her collarbone, before he stopped, seeing her clothes were in the way.

Julie blushed. "Do you...want me to take my clothes off?"

"Yes.." Rick replied in a low, husky voice that caused Julie to heat up even more.

Her blush deepened as she stood up and took off her nightgown, revealing a pair of lacy white panties and a matching bra. Seeing this, Rick's cock started to harden, which Julie took notice of, and she couldn't help but feel even more flustered.

Taking a deep breath, Julie than unhooked her bra and pulled down her panties, giving Rick a clear view of her nude body and her hourglass figure.

The sight of her aroused Rick even further, and he stood up, surprising her, before grabbing into her and kissing her deeply. She melted into the kiss, and surrendered herself to him, letting him fully take control.

Rick pulled away, to take his clothes off this time until he was left in his boxers, intent on teasing Julie. She stared at his bulge, biting her lip upon noticing how big it was. Then, he slowly pulled them down until his hard cock was fully revealed, and then he quickly took them off. The sight of him made Julie's face a deep red, she had thought he was big, but not that big, and she was unable to take her eyes off it.

Seeing her reaction caused Rick to smirk. "Like what you see?" She could only nod.

Rick laughed and grabbed hold of her, pushing her down on the bed and kissing her further. At this point, the kisses were very heated and passionate, both were moaning with need, wanting each other desperately.

He let his hands wander down to her soft breasts, and began to squeeze and fondle them as they kept kissing. Her moans became louder, and the sound was music to his ears, he wanted more, and to hear them without being muffled by the kissing, so he moved his lips away and put his focus on her breasts.

He let his hands slowly begin to fondle them as she continued to moan, before pinching and rubbing her aching nipples. Julie's skin was naturally pretty pale, and so the contrast between her pale white skin and pink nipples was pretty noticeable, her nipples looked really pink, and in truth, Rick loved it.

Rick also loved just how big her breasts were, he had noticed they definitely had to big in the past, but seeing them fully revealed to him was something else entirely. They were so luscious and full, it took everything in his power to hold himself back from pinning her down and fucking her senseless. He knew it was best to take his time first after all.

Once he was finished with her breasts, he trailed kisses all the way down to her pelvis, stopping right at her pussy.

"Please…don't...don't tease me..." Julie begged softly.

Rick chuckled. "I'll give you exactly what you want baby girl." Then, he leaned in, giving her a look belonging to a hungry predator, and began licking her pussy lips, making her throw her head back and moan loudly, gripping onto the blanket of her bed.

It didn't take long for him to notice just how sweet she tasted, like honey, and he instantly wanted more. Gripping her by her thighs, Rick let his tongue go deeper, savouring both her sweet taste and those lovely moans she was letting out. He licked every inch of her but her clit, and she soon took notice of this.

"You're teasing again…" She whined.

He moved his face away slightly for a moment to answer her. "It's so fun to tease you though." As he said this, Julie could feel his hot breath against her pussy, making her bit her lip, feeling her pussy tingling.

As he drove back in, Julie couldn't help but notice just how much better his tongue was compared to her hands. Her fingers could only pleasure her so well, Rick's tongue felt so good that she couldn't enough of it. The way it traced along her pussy was too good for words to describe.

"You're amazing.." Julie moaned.

"I know." Rick replied. "I always am."

He then went right back to licking her, and while doing so, decided he'd teased her enough, and went to licking and sucking on her clit.

"Rick!" Julie cried out, holding onto his head as he pleasured her swollen clit.

The pleasure quickly became too much, and it didn't take long for Julie to cum. Rick grinned was satisfaction as he did so, before licking her clit again, making her cum even more.

She was a painting mess when she was done, and looked right up at him with need in her eyes.

"Sit up." Rick commanded roughly.

Julie obeyed hastily, and watched as Rick shoved his cock against her face. "Be a good girl and suck me off."

She whimpered, opening her mouth and taking his length in as best she could.

"Fuuuuck.." Rick moaned out, placing a hand on her head.

Slowly, Julie began to suck him off as he requested, he was so big that it was hard to fit in her mouth, but she did the best she could. He watched as her head bobbed up and down while she sucked his cock, her hands gripping onto the base of his cock. Julie could hear him moaning, and pulled away for a moment. "Am I making you feel good?" She asked.

"Yea.." He groaned, before shoving his cock back into her mouth. "Keep going...just like that.." His hands began to grip tightly onto her hair so she couldn't get away. She continued to suck him off, and looked up at him to see an expression of pure bliss and ecstasy on his face. Julie was glad she was making him feel so good, especially after all the torture and pain he'd suffered through, she felt he needed this.

Soon enough, Rick pulled Julie off his cock and came all over her face. She didn't seem to mind too much, and simply wiped the cum off. "Did I do a good job?" She asked. "I haven't...done this before...so..um.."

He chuckled. "Not bad for your first time."

She smiled at this, and he eyed her, realizing something. "Julie...are you a virgin?" He asked, raising a side of his brow.

Julie blushed nervously. "Um...well...yes.." She admitted. "I know it's embarrassing because I'm twenty-seven and all..but well...the right guy hasn't come along yet..until I met you at least.."

Rick felt a sense of pride that she saw him as the right guy for her, and found how flustered she was being about this, rather adorable. "There's no need to be ashamed, I don't mind." He then leaned in close and whispered into her ear. "It's been a long time since I've h-had some virgin pussy, I promise I'll make this good for y-you baby.."

Julie blushed intensely at this, anticipating what was next. Rick grabbed her and pinned her down on her back, putting himself over top of her. Then, he rubbed his hard cock against her pussy before slowly shoving it inside her.

She felt a bit of pain at first, due to how big he was and never having had sex before, but soon, the pleasure began to override the pain. He thrusted inside her, still remaining slow, and even the slow pace felt really good, she knew she needed more however.

"Faster...please.." Julie moaned.

The slow pace had been torturous for Rick, so hearing her words more than excited him, and he briefly pulled out before shoving back in and fucking her hard.

Both let out desperate and needy moans as they fucked. Julie held onto Rick's back as he took her, unable to stop moaning as he fucked her hard, loving how big he was and that she had managed to arouse him so much that he was acting so desperate and horny for her, his pace fast and his heavy balls slapping against her as they fucked.

Rick moved his head towards her neck and gently gave her a few love bites. "So everyone knows your mine...that y-you belong to me.." He growled low.

"Yes..I'm yours….I belong to you.." Julie agreed, her voice laced with lust and desire.

This reply made Rick bite his lip, and it was all becoming too much to handle. The sight of her breasts bouncing, the softness and warmth of her pussy, the way she clearly wanted him back...Rick knew he couldn't take it anymore and he quickly pulled out, rubbing his cock to let his cum release onto her chest and stomach. With that, he watched her, noticing the look of need on her face and smirked.

"Julie...I wonder...have you thought about us doing this before?" Rick asked. "Because I have, that night you heard me saying your name? I was stroking my cock while thinking about you giving me a blowjob. I've wanted you from the moment I saw you...and now...you're all mine.."

Julie was shocked by his confession, and blushed shyly. "Yes...I've...thought about us doing this...since we arrived at Glorf.."

"Fuck." He hissed. "If I'd have known you wanted me, I would've been fucking this sweet little pussy everyday since we got there."

"Well...you have me now right? It's..not so bad is it?"

"No..you're right." Rick smirked. "I've got you right where I want you after all."

With that, he kissed her deeply and lifted her up, positioning her over his cock and thrusting deep inside. Julie gasped and held onto him for dear life as he held onto her as well.

This time, she came first, the previous round having made her sex more sensitive than before. Rick followed close behind, pulling out and cumming on the blanket.

When it was over, Rick grinned as he noticed Julie's legs were shaking. "Mmm...I take it y-you liked it?" He asked.

"I loved it." She smiled. "I never thought my first time would be so...wonderful.."

He winked. "Guess you did a good job then, saving yourself for m-me."

"Yeah...I guess so.." She giggled.

They laid under the covers together, and Rick had his arms wrapped protectively around Julie as she nestled against him, her soft breasts pressing against his chest.

He looked at her peaceful face and stroked it, satisfied that he finally had Julie all to himself.


	12. Chapter 12

When Cyn woke up, he found that Rick was gone, much to his dismay, and to make things worse, the guards were all dead and blood was everywhere.

It wasn't hard for him to deduce that Rick had killed all the guards and escaped, and it angered and devastated him beyond belief. His plan had failed, and now he would be discharged, after all his hard work and planning too! It would be for nothing in the end.

Cyn returned to where Pyri was, and when he arrived, the look on her face showed nothing but pure rage.

"I gave you three chances, and you wasted them all!' She yelled. "You are discharged from now on. It's far too late anyways, nothing can be done."

Cyn was baffled. "Your Imperial Highness...you're just...giving up...after everything? This empire has been going on for thousands of years! You can't just-"

"I can and I will!" Pyri interrupted. "Panic and chaos have ensued here for far too long, the planet has become a mess. Our empire was already failing anyways.." She sighed. "I have given away the remainder of our planets to the newly rising Galactic Federation, and sending off remaining citizens to other parts of the galaxy."

"But-"

"Enough! I want you to leave immediately! Get out!"

Cyn hung his head, and obeyed one final time to his empress. He walked out, feeling dejected, and observed outside to see ruin and destroyed buildings everywhere.

He clenched his fist angrily, this was all Sanchez's fault! If he hadn't stolen that chunk, none of this would've ever happened. Cyn looked up into the sky, and knew what he had to do: take revenge.

* * *

The next day, Julie found her thoughts returning to Rick again, and the torture he suffered at the hands of the fyralogins. It must've been traumatic for him, she couldn't stop worrying about it.

After breakfast, she decided to ask him about it, but Rick just scoffed it off. "Y-You worry too much Julie, I'm fine, everything's fine."

"I worry about you because I love and care for you. Just talk to me okay? There's no need to hide things from me." She replied.

"Says you, you've never told me what happened to your family. If anything, you're the one keeping secrets from me."

She sighed. "No, you're right. It was hypocritical of me to want you to not keep secrets, while I've been...keeping some myself."

Julie looked away, and Rick seemed a bit remorseful for acting harsh towards her. "I'm...I'm sorry...j-j-just..y-you can tell me what h-happened, I'm h-here for y-you."

She turned her head up and smiled weakly, finally deciding he needed to know the truth.

Taking a deep breath, Julie began to explain what happened. "It was...a couple of years ago..back in '75...my parents had been saving up money to buy me a house, the same one we're in right now. After graduating from university, I returned home, and that's when they showed me this house. I was so excited, I moved in as soon as possible. But…" She started to tear up, which worried Rick. "My parents...were going to come visit me after I finished moving in, but on their way there...the weather.." She sniffled. "It got really bad..and they...they got into an accident...and.." Julie broke down into sobs, unable to finish.

Rick wiped a few of tears away and held her close, letting her sob against him. "Let me guess….they died?" He asked.

"Yeah.." Julie muttered through her tears.

Rick gently rubbed her back, not saying a word afterwards. He didn't really know how to comfort her, but he figured that what he was doing should be enough. He didn't understand her pain, due to how different their relationships with their parents had been, but he tried to be there for her regardless. Rick hadn't lost anyone particularly close to him, in part because he usually didn't let people get close to him to begin with, Julie was one of the few exceptions.

Rick decided the best thing he could do right now was find a way to cheer her up, and see her smile and laugh again, he hated seeing her so sad.

He pulled her away and gave her a big smile. "I have an idea to make you feel better, do you like video games?"

A small smile formed on Julie's face. "I do."

"Then I got something to show you!"

* * *

Rick brought Julie over to an intergalactic arcade called "Blips and Chitz", it was one of his favourite places to visit, and he was sure, since Julie liked video games too, that she would enjoy it as well.

As soon as the two stepped inside, Julie's eyes widened in awe and wonder, taking in the sights. It looked a tiny bit like a normal arcade on Earth, but far bigger and with a far wide selection of games to play. Not only that, but she could see screens displaying information relating to the arcade, various floors to visit, and in the center, there was a planet-like object with the words "Blips and Chitz" around it.

"I've been managing to save up enough flurbos for the two of us to use. I even started selling weapons to an assassin I met not too long ago." Rick mentioned. "I...actually was planning to spend an entire afternoon here on my own for a bit, but now that you're here, we can do it together."

Julie grinned at him. "So..is this like our first date?"

He blushed. "Yeah...I-I g-guess ssso.."

She giggled, and took his hand in hers, then they started walking together. Rick smirked, he could only imagine Julie's reaction to one of the games here. Video games on Earth were extremely primitive, so this would be completely different for her. As to not freak her out too much, he decided on starting her off with something simple.

Rick led her to one of the arcade cabinets, and pointed to it. "Here's one I think you'll like. The objective is simple, all you have to do is fly the spaceship while avoiding obstacles and shooting at enemies."

She went and sat down in front of it, her curiosity peaked. "Sounds easy enough, this should be fun!"

As soon as she pressed the button to start it up, the extremely high-tech graphics amazed her beyond belief, and she was at a loss for words.

Rick laughed and tapped her shoulder to get her attention, snapping her out of her amazed state. "Sorry!" Julie apologized. "It's just...I've never seen anything like this…"

"Don't worry about it, just try it out." He grinned.

Julie smiled at him, then turned back over to the game and attempted to play. He watched as she played and was a bit impressed at how well she was doing, it seemed she had managed to pick up on things pretty quickly.

When she finished, Rick gave her a thumbs up, then went over to play the game himself.

It was Julie's turn to watch him, and she found herself in awe about how amazing he was, he drove the spaceship very smoothly and with ease, and was able to shoot tons of obstacles quickly.

When he finished, Julie went up to him in excitement. "Wow Ricardo! You were amazing!" She beamed. "What are we gonna play next?"

Rick smiled at her use of his full name, and took out the tickets from the machine to get prizes, before looking around and seeing what else they could play together. When he found something he thought she'd like, he took her over there and they began playing the game together.

"Good luck trying to beat me Julie! I'm the master at this game!" Rick boasted. "Y-You'll never even come cl-close!"

Julie giggled. "We'll see about that!"

She was again, able to pick up on things pretty fast, and much to Rick's surprise, she was managing to do really well, and he was getting nervous that she might beat him. He hated losing, being very competitive when it came to games, and wasn't even going to let Julie win. He made the move to try and use tricks in order to win, but Julie caught on and was able to get the upper hand, causing her to win.

"Yay! I won!" She exclaimed happily. "Guess I'm the new master at this game huh?"

Rick just 'hmphed' and appeared grumpy and annoyed, crossing his arms together and looking away.

"Aw don't be such a sore loser, Mr. Grumpypants!" She laughed.

Rick didn't respond, and Julie got a devious idea. She grabbed onto his face and pulled him in for a kiss, making him blush madly. He was surprised, but quickly found himself enjoying it.

"All better now?" Julie asked.

"Yep.." Rick said, still in a bit of a lovestruck haze, before realizing he was in one and shaking his head, snapping him out of it. She laughed, and watched as Rick took out the tickets from the machine, before glimpsing back at her. "You wanna help me get more of these? If we win enough...well..there are some prizes I really wanna g-get.." He winked.

"Of course! Let's get going!" Julie agreed.

* * *

The two went to play more games together, having fun and of course, collecting the tickets. Julie continuously found herself amazed with every game they played, and she wasn't sure if she could ever play a simple game like Breakout or Pong ever again, but to her, it was worth it.

When they'd managed to collect enough tickets, they went over to the prize booth where Rick traded some tickets in for...a scooter? She was surprised, but not complaining.

"Rick! Why did you get a scooter?" She asked playfully.

"Why wouldn't I get a scooter? These things are amazing!" He retorted, and Julie watched as he went on it, and he started to zoom around in pure glee.

Julie was glad to see him doing so well, and realized that this showed Rick clearly has a more childish side to his personality, not that she minded. If she was being completely honest, she found it rather...cute, and it further showed how Rick wasn't afraid to be himself.

She was still concerned about how the torture he'd suffered had affected him, but decided that maybe he just wouldn't want to talk about it, and that was okay with her. Besides, she'd rather see him like this than in any misery or pain.

At the same time, Julie thought about how it must be the same for Rick too, that he didn't like seeing her miserable either, and that this must be his way of making her feel better. She had to admit, it worked. Her pain was still there deep down, but the fact alone Rick did this for her, was enough to show that he cared, and that meant the world to her.

* * *

When they were finished, they returned home, only to see that it was dark out.

"Oh goodness!" Julie exclaimed. "We were there for a pretty long time huh?"

"Heh heh...y-yeah.." He chuckled. "But it was worth it right?"

"Totally."

They headed back inside, where Julie decided to thank Rick for taking her to the arcade.

"Thank you by the way...for taking me to Blips and Chitz. It was a lot of fun...and...I'd love to go back someday." She smiled. "By the way...did you take me there to cheer me up after I told you about...you know.."

Rick nodded. "I didn't know what else to do...I-I've never had to comfort someone b-before...s-sorry.."

"Oh don't worry about it." Julie assured him. "The fact alone you wanted to cheer me up is all that matters to me, it shows me that you care for me and want me to be happy."

Rick blushed shyly at her words. "Ah..i-it's...n-nothing r-really.."

"No, it's not nothing, it means the world to me." She replied before kissing his cheek, making him blush more.

He was speechless, unsure what to say, making Julie giggle softly. "I guess I'll be off to bed now, see you tomorrow.."

Rick smiled at her, and they shared a kiss before he left back for his apartment.

While there, his mind kept thinking about Julie, how much fun they'd had at Blips and Chitz, how lucky he was to be with her. That had been the most fun he'd ever had there, and he knew it had to do with Julie, she brought out so much joy and excitement in him, and he never had to hide any part of who he was with her.

Rick had never been in a serious relationship, just casual ones, so he didn't know exactly what he was doing, but he hoped he would learn what to do through Julie. She was always there for him, and he knew he would always be there for her.

* * *

In the morning, Julie decided to talk to Mark and Vivian again, especially Vivian. She wanted to apologize with her, and of course, they also had to know she was with Rick too.

Julie picked up her phone and dialed Mark's number, before hearing his surfer dude-like voice on the other end. "What's up? Whose this?"

"It's me, Julie.." She answered.

"Oh..everything going okay?" He asked worriedly.

"Yes, everything's fine, no need to worry, I'm doing better now." Julie replied. "I also wanted to let you know, that I want you and Vivian to come over, I have so much to tell you!"

Mark smiled, already being able to tell from her voice that she was indeed doing better now. He was a little nervous about bringing Vivian over, but knew it was for the best. "Alrighty then, see ya soon!" Then he hung up.

Julie put the phone back, and then waited for her friend's arrival. She'd been hoping to reconcile with Vivian, and apologize for yelling at her, it had been her mind last night while she tried to sleep, and she knew she needed to do something about it.

* * *

When they arrived, Julie greeted Mark with a hug, and when she saw Vivian, she gave her a gentle smile. "It's great to see you again Vivian." She greeted.

Vivian sighed. "Julie...look...I'm sorry...I shouldn't have yelled at you."

"Thank you..and I'm sorry for yelling too.."

"What? No! You don't need to apologize, I was the one who yelled at you initially."

"But-"

"Ladies please!" Mark interrupted. "Can you all agree neither of you meant to yell and you both wanna just get along again?"

They both looked at him, and Julie nodded her head in agreement, with Vivian following soon after, looking a bit annoyed that Mark interrupted them.

Now that that was resolved, Julie had something she wanted to bring up to them. "Well, I do have some great news!"

"What is it?" Mark asked curiously.

"Rick and I are officially together now!" She revealed happily. "A lot happened recently, I got kidnapped by an alien, but Rick saved and protected me, and now well...we're a couple.."

Vivian had a befuddled look on her face, "Hold on, what is this about you getting kidnapped by an alien?"

"And just yesterday Rick took me an intergalactic arcade! It was so much fun!" Julie eagerly continued, completing ignoring her question.

Mark's eyes widened. "You went to an intergalactic arcade?! What were the games like?"

"Really high tech and so advanced!" Julie answered. "It was so amazing it nearly blew my mind!"

"Cool! Do you think I could go sometime?"

She giggled. "Maybe, if Rick would let you."

Vivian watched as Mark got all excited, and to her surprise, he went over and hugged her, making her blush, before pulling away. She was a little surprised, but shook it off, and her gaze focused on Julie. She wasn't exactly thrilled to hear that Julie and Rick were a couple now, considering Rick was a murderer and all, but at least she seemed happy.

"So, you and Rick are a couple now huh?" Vivian asked, raising a brow.

Julie's glee was replaced with nervousness. "Umm...yes...are you..okay with that?"

"Why would I be? He kills people for God's sake.."

Mark went in between them, laughing nervously. "Ha ha...let's not start this again.."

"No, he's right." Julie agreed. "Vivian, can you at least be happy for me?"

Vivian bit her lip, and sighed. "Whatever."

"Thank you so much!" Julie exclaimed and hugged her, making her blush once again.

They spent a bit more time together, before Vivian and Mark said their goodbyes to Julie, and were on their way home.

* * *

Now alone again, Julie thought about Rick and seeing him again, wondering how he was doing.

She was so grateful to be with him, and she thought again about how he'd comforted her about her parents deaths.

Since the day they died, Julie hadn't been the same, it had been a long time since she'd felt genuinely happy, but Rick had made her feel that way again. Thinking back, Julie wondered if she could finally come to terms with their deaths. As she thought, a flashback to her childhood formed in her mind.

* * *

 _Julie was sitting in front of the mirror in her room, while her mother brushed her hair, before tying it into a single braid and topping it with a white bow._

 _"Turn around Juliana, let's see how you look." Her mother told her. Julie did just that, and her mother gasped in awe. "Oh sweetie, you look so beautiful!'_

 _Julie smiled, but it quickly faded. "No one else seems to think so.." She sighed. "I think they're right.."_

 _"Just because a lot of people say something about you, doesn't make it true. You are a beautiful girl, you just don't realize it, but you will in time, I'm sure. Maybe it'll take someone very special to help you see that you are." Her mother grinned._

 _"Like my true love?" Julie beamed._

 _Her mother laughed. "Your true love will be able to not only see how beautiful how truly are, and help you realize that, but they'll love you for you. That's how you'll know he's the one."_

 _"When will I meet him?" She asked._

 _"Someday...maybe when you're all grown up..maybe one day you'll just bump into him by accident, or he'll bump into you!" Her mother giggled, booping her nose._

 _Julie giggled too. "Is that how you knew Daddy was your true love?"_

 _"Yep." She confirmed. "I was just a waitress at a diner, taking orders and feeling bored out of my mind. Then one day Daddy popped in and I just felt this connection with him. We started talking a hit it off so well! Vivian's Mommy would tease me all the time about it, asking when I was going to marry him, and I did, then you came around."_

 _Julie's mother hugged her tightly, and she hugged back. Her words had comforted her, and she did feel a bit better now._

 _They then the doorbell ring, and the door opening, alerting her mother. "Daddy's home!" She exclaimed. "We have to go give him the casserole we made together!"_

 _She started walking out of her room, and Julie followed happily, now feeling like she didn't have any worries anymore._

* * *

Julie shed a few tears, thinking about the happy memory with her mother. It seemed she'd guessed correctly somehow that Rick would end up bumping into her, or more like he'd rammed into her, but still! It was close enough for her. Everything her mother had said about her true love was right on the nose.

She smiled, thinking about her future with Rick.

* * *

 **a/n: I know the whole "dead parents" cliche is annoying but, I think I have a good reason for including it. So first of all, let me ask, would you let your daughter date one of the most wanted and dangerous criminals in the galaxy? No! Of course you wouldn't! They were cut out because their inclusion would've added unnecessary drama to the story that had no place being there. Considering all the development Julie gets, I figured her parents had to be mentioned. It was better to kill them off.**

 **i wanted to make their banter and teasing feel believable…hope it is!**


	13. Chapter 13

**a/n: I'm sorry if this feels a little anticlimactic, I'm not good at writing fighting scenes. But uh..I tried.**

* * *

Pyri was sitting alone in her room, all of her former subjects had already been sent off, all her planets given away, now she was the only one left.

She removed her headdress, which bore the colours of the first emperor, the main part was red like his skin, and the top piece was gold like his eyes. Funnily enough, Pyri also had red skin and golden eyes, perhaps being the last empress was her fate from birth.

Pyri simply put the headdress aside, and sat alone in the darkness, overlooking her now abandoned planet.

* * *

Rick had came over to visit Julie, just to spend time with her. The two of them were relaxing and playing on a console Julie owned, while munching on wafer cookies. Julie was actually surprised she was able to play her old games again, but was actually quite relieved, relishing in the simplicity of Pong, watching as what looked like two glow sticks were hitting a white ball.

As they played together, they heard and knock at the door, and Julie got up and went over to answer it; when she did, she was greeted by Mark and Vivian.

"Hello you two! Come inside!" She invited gleefully.

Mark and Vivian poked their heads in, where they saw Rick, still holding onto the controller and giving them both a death stare. Mark chuckled nervously and looked over at Julie again, while Vivian glared back for a moment and looked at Julie too.

"Rick..doesn't seem to happy to see us…" Mark muttered.

"Don't worry about it," She assured him. "Just come inside."

Mark was a bit hesitant, but stepped inside anyways, and Vivian followed.

"What do you guys think we should do?" Julie asked. "Rick and I were just playing Pong, but I'm not sure if there's enough controllers for the four of us…"

Mark stroked the stray hairs on his chin and thought for a moment. "What about...Monopoly?"

Before anyone could respond, a loud crash was heard outside, making Rick put the controller down and stand up. "It's him.." He uttered.

"Who?" Vivian questioned.

"The...the alien that...that kidnapped me.." Julie replied.

Mark and Vivian were both shocked. "What?"

When they all headed outside, they saw a blue hand punch it's way out of the ship, before getting out and revealing the hand was Cyn's, his face was contorted in rage.

He pointed at Rick. "You! You took everything from me! And now I'm going to make you wish you never took that chunk!"

Rick rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

Cyn was enraged further that Rick wasn't taking him seriously, and began shooting at him, but Rick managed to dodge all the bullets.

Mark, Vivian and Julie watched as the two fought each other. Julie had her hands clasped together nervously, hoping Rick would be okay, while Vivian looked baffled and Mark was watching excitedly, he couldn't believe he was really seeing an alien!

Vivian turned her gaze over to Mark, and was shocked and confused by his reaction. "How are you getting excited by this?" She asked.

"How are you not?'' He retorted. Vivian just grumbled, blushing.

Julie put her hands against her face, not listening to Mark and Vivian, her focus was entirely on Rick. "Please be okay...I love you.." She whispered.

Rick knocked Cyn's gun away, and pulled out one of his own. Cyn gazed at it. "Is that gonna instantly kill me or something?"

Rick smirked. "Where's the fun in t-that?" He then proceeded to hit Cyn in the face with the gun, knocking him down. Before Cyn could get up, Rick held him down and placed a gun against his forehead.

Before Rick could shoot, Cyn got a devious idea. He knew Rick had a weak spot for Julie and used this to his advantage. "Don't you think by doing this, you might scare Julie?" He asked.

Rick's eyes widened. "W-What?"

"Well let's think, you hit me in the face,knocking me down! And now you're going to shoot me. You're going to kill someone right in front of her. How do you think she feels?"

Rick pulled the gun away. "J-Julie k-k-knows I d-do this.." He mumbled defensively.

"But in front of her? Have you ever done that?" Cyn asked again.

"I m-m-mean...yeah…"

"Was she even looking like she is right now?"

"Well no..but.."

"I guess this means you've never killed someone right in front of her eyes. Like I said, you might scare her by doing this." Cyn smirked. "Then she might be scared of you."

Rick stopped looking so angry, he looked more like a sad puppy. "B-But I.."

Seeing the opportunity, Cyn grabbed the gun away from Rick and shot him below the stomach. He fell to the ground, and Julie immediately ran after him. "Rick!" She cried out and embraced him, placing a hand over his bullet wound.

"Julie get back here!" Vivian called out.

However, Julie didn't care. She didn't care if Cyn shot her too, she just had to be there for Rick.

Cyn walked up to them, snarling. "Why are you even bothering to protect him! He's the villain here, not me. Sanchez is a monster, and I'm surprised you haven't realized it yet."

Julie suddenly got angry and defensive, she had enough of Cyn and him chasing after her and Rick. "Rick isn't the monster here Cyn, its you!" She yelled. Everyone was shocked at her boldness, except for Rick, who weakly smiled and rested his head against Julie's chest.

"How is he not the monster here? He is one of the most dangerous and wanted criminals in the entire galaxy! Do you know how many people he has killed? Too many to count! His music is garbage too." Cyn growled.

"If he really was a monster, he wouldn't love me. But he does, and I love him too." She declared.

"Ha!" Cyn laughed mockingly. "You really think that monster is capable of any love? You must be joking!" He grabbed onto Julie's arm tightly and pulled her away from Rick. "You are such an idiot! Just let him die! It'll do the galaxy a favour!"

In retaliation towards Cyn, Mark grabbed onto a large rock and hit him on the head with it, knocking him to the ground and freeing Julie from his grasp. Angered, Cyn pulled out a taser-like object and shocked Mark with it, causing him to fall on the ground. "Mark!" Vivian screamed and ran towards him.

"Vivian…" He smiled weakly. "You do care.."

Vivian blushed. "Now isn't the best time Mark.." But he just laughed.

Cyn was fed up. He had to weaken Julie too in order to kill Rick. She'd gotten back to Rick, who was starting to regain his strength, and wrapped her arms around him, her face showing her worry.

He grabbed her again, causing Julie to reach out for Rick desperately, who reached back. "Let me go!" She fussed and squirmed about. Cyn was growing frustrated, and so he hit Julie hard on her head, making her fall down and lie motionless on the ground.

Vivian shook Mark and pointed to where Julie was, and they both ran over to her, checking her injury.

As for Rick, the moment Cyn knocked her down, he screamed her name out in desperation, and believed she was dead when he saw her lying down without moving. He regained his strength, and pulled out his gun again. Consumed with grief and a now murderous rage, Rick attacked Cyn and starting beating and shooting at him, tears streaming down his face the whole time.

Mark and Vivian watched in shock, and Vivian checked Julie's heartbeat. "Julie has a heartbeat..it's just a little faint. She's just unconscious.." She concluded. Mark nodded and placed a hand over Julie's wound to prevent further bleeding.

Rick was unaware of Julie still being alive, and was locked in anger. When he managed to calm down enough, Cyn was nothing but a bloody and mangled body. He swung his gun around, unable to do anything but cry. When he finished swinging, he dropped the gun and sat down on his knees, burying his face in his hands.

Vivian sighed and walked up towards him. "She's still alive Rick..she has a heartbeat."

Rick removed his hands from his face and stared at her. "S-she..she d-d-does..?" He sniffled.

He got up, and followed Vivian over to where Julie was, and shoved Mark out of the way, who'd been holding onto Julie. Rick held her close, and pressed his head against her chest, where he could hear her heartbeat. His tears of sadness turned into tears of joy, and he put his head up against her cheek, still sobbing happily.

Mark and Vivian watched them, before looking at each other, and smiled. Rick may have literally just killed someone right in front of them but at least...he showed how much he cared for and loved Julie.

* * *

Rick dissolved Cyn's body, and then carried Julie bridal-style to her room, and laid her on her bed. Using her first aid kit, he grabbed bandages and wrapped one around the wound on her head. Mark and Vivian had wanted to stay, but he angrily made them leave and said he'd take care of Julie himself. Vivian was annoyed, but begrudgingly agreed to it along with Mark. They'd asked him to call and let them know when she'd recovered, but Rick didn't give a shit about them, his only concern was for Julie.

He put a chair beside her bed and sat down on it. Rick figured that in the meantime, he'd remove the bullet still in his body. He'd much rather have Julie do it, but she was still unconscious, and he'd done this plenty of times before without trouble.

It had been painful as always, but in his mind, he really didn't care, it hurt more to see Julie like she was now.

After getting shot by Cyn, Rick had felt so out of it, but whenever Julie was near him, he instantly felt better, and far more relaxed. Then he'd seen Cyn hit her, and knock her unconscious. In his hazy state, he'd thought Cyn had killed her and immediately retaliated, killing him right back. The relief he felt when he found she was actually alive was unimaginable.

Rick wouldn't know what to do if he really did lose Julie, and he swore to himself then and there that he would do everything in his power to protect her from harm. He would never let anyone take her away from him.

Since Julie still hadn't woken up, Rick remained sitting on the chair, until he accidentally fell asleep.

* * *

Julie's eyes fluttered open, and she instantly felt pain in her head, and put her hand on it, only to realize it was covered by a bandage. She tried to think about why she was like this, and remembered the fight with Cyn, her last memory before blacking out was seeing Cyn glaring at her angrily, a fist raised in the air. Julie knew he must've hit her, and the punch had been strong enough to not only give her a headache, but render her unconscious. She sighed, at least she had some medication to relieve the pain that she could take.

Turning her head to look beside her, Julie saw Rick sitting on a chair next to her bed, fast asleep. Her heart fluttered, knowing he'd put the chair there so he could watch over her. Sure he'd fallen asleep, but still...it showed he cared. She also noticed blood on his clothes, and wondered what happened.

Julie got closer to him, and shook him a little, making him wake up.

"Guh..huh? Julie.." Rick muttered out sleepily.

She giggled and shook him more. "Rick it's me, Julie."

His eyes instantly snapped open and he started looking panicked. "Julie!"

She placed a hand on his shoulder and looked up at him. "Rick, I'm here, it's okay.."

He looked back down at her, his heavy breathing beginning to steady. "Julie?" Then, a smile formed on his face and he hugged her. "Y-Y-You're okay…"

She hugged him back, before pulling away and gazing at him again. "What happened? Where's Mark and Vivian? Why are you covered in blood?"

"Well.." Rick hesitated for a moment. "I-I thought...I th-thought that when Cyn had knocked you unconscious, he'd actually killed you. I w-was so angry and grief-stricken that I-I-I...k-k-killed him back. Vivian revealed you were still alive, so I took you back inside and.."

"Were you the one that put the bandages on me?" Julie asked.

Rick blushed shyly. "Y-Yea...that was m-me...I told Mark and Vivian I'd look after you and made them leave. I took the bullet Cyn had shot me with out by myself, and then waited for you to wake up."

Julie gasped. "You...you took the bullet out by yourself? Why?"

He shrugged. "You weren't up yet. Plus, I've done this myself before, it's not a big deal."

"But it is a big deal! It's dangerous!" She panicked. "Don't ever do something like that again!"

Rick laughed at this, but it faded when he saw her hold onto her head in pain. "Are you okay?" He asked worriedly.

"Yeah...I'm okay.." She smiled.

Rick smiled back and cupped her cheeks with his hands, before leaning in and kissing her forehead. Afterwards, he got off the chair and sat on the bed beside her, holding her gently in his arms. Rick's happiness was there, but briefly, his expression faltered, and Julie took notice of it. "What's wrong Ricardo?" She asked.

He sighed. "He was right you know, I'm a m-monster."

"That's not true.."

"Don't defend me Julie, it's not worth it. I'm not a good person, you should know that." He then clenched his fists together angrily. "I've done terrible, irredeemable things in my life, so don't even bother." Rick snarled.

Julie was silent for a moment, before kissing him on the lips, and watching how shocked he was by it. "W-Wha..huh?" Rick asked.

"You're not as bad as you think you are." She assured him. "You're always there for me when I'm upset, you protect me and look out for me, and need I remind you of when you nearly sacrificed your life for me?"

Well, Rick had to admit, she did have a point there. "I-I mean...I g-g-guess...but I've still done a lot of awful things t-too. Don't you even care?"

"The good outweighs the bad for me." She admitted. "I love you, nothing is going to change that."

He was stunned, his mind felt a blur, and for a moment, he didn't know what to say. "I don't understand...is there nothing that would make you stop loving me?"

Julie shook her head. "I will never stop loving you, no matter what."

Rick severely doubted this, but he was grateful nonetheless. She always was there for him, no matter what, and he felt unworthy of her love. They were as different as night and day, she was an angel and he was a demon. He never felt like he deserved even an ounce of her kindness, it was like she was wasting it on him. Regardless of how much of a terrible person he really was, she loved him anyways, and it was baffling in his eyes. Sometimes he wondered if he could ever deem himself worthy of her love. He didn't think that was possible though.

* * *

After taking some pills to deal with her headache, Julie called Mark and Vivian to let them know she was okay, and they both seemed relieved. She thought it was best not to mention Rick hadn't cared to initially tell them when she had recovered, knowing what Vivian's reaction would be.

With that out of the way, Julie just decided the best thing to do now was relax. When she saw Rick come down the stairs to see her, she smiled. There was no Cyn, there was no Fyralogin Empire, they weren't on Glorf anymore, it was just the two of them together, and she saw a bright future between them.

* * *

 **a/n: I have this tendency to keep making Julie constantly suffer, and it's not going to get any better.**

 **Also, when Julie says she'll never stop loving Rick..she means it. Bitch, if she saw the shit Rick was doing in the show she'd still love that man. That's true dedication, love and loyalty right there.**

 **One thing I wanted to mention is one reason Julie's personality is the way it is, is because I think Rick would need to be with someone different than him. His relationship with Unity for example, was a disaster. Rick is his own worst enemy, why would he be with someone like him? It wouldn't work it. Before you ask, no I don't like any Rick ship that's out there, including that popular crossover pairing and the ship that shall not be named. I think it's better to give them such contrasting personalities and beliefs, it makes things more interesting. That's why the dynamic between Rick and Morty works so well after all. I wanted Rick, Julie, Mark, and Vivian to all have their own unique personalities, it's fun to have them play off each other. And again, my hero/villain, opposites attract, beauty and the beast ship loving ass demanded it.**


	14. Chapter 14

**a/n: I would say now this is the final chapter of the "main story". Chapters 15-17 are...well you might be able to guess.**

 **warning for nsfw content. also, it's long.**

* * *

Since the incident with Cyn was over, Rick decided to introduce Julie to his best friends Birdperson and Squanchy.

The two arrived on Birdperson's home planet. When they got there, Julie found herself in awe at the sight of it. Unlike Glorf, this planet was filled with nature, she spotted trees, bushes, and crystal-like formations sticking out of the ground. In the distance, she could see grassy hills and buildings covered in tree roots, with trees sticking out of them.

Julie already preferred this place over Glorf, as while she thought the advanced technology was really amazing, there was simplicity and beauty in nature to her. She didn't like going outside too much, unless there was shade, as being a redhead made her skin more sensitive to sunlight. But regardless, she still loved nature.

Rick smiled upon seeing her enthusiasm for the place, and grabbed her hand, leading her over to where Birdperson's house, where he and Squanchy were waiting for them.

When they entered his house, Squanchy went over to them to greet them excitedly. "Squanch to see you two!" He then turned over to look at a confused and shy Julie. "And you...you're Rick's squanch aren't you?"

Julie was completely befuddled, and Rick could see it on her face. He chuckled and went over to whisper in her ear. "He's asking if you're my girlfriend."

Knowing this, Julie turned her head back to look at Squanchy and nodded.

Squanchy grinned, taking her hand in his. "Rick is squanching lucky to get you as his squanch! It's squanching to squanch you!" Then he kissed her hand, making her blush shyly, and causing Rick to stare angrily at Squanchy. He took notice of this and quickly backed off.

It was Birdperson's turn to greet her, and he was far less forward than Squanchy had been. "Greetings, I am Birdperson, and you must be Julie, Rick spoke very fondly of you."

Rick blushed, and Julie looked over and smiled at him, before looking back at Birdperson. "Yes..that's me.." She said shyly. "Rick mentioned the three of you are part of a band."

"Indeed." He confirmed. "We were supposed to perform at a concert last week, but Rick was gone and we couldn't do it, it had to be rescheduled."

"Do you think I could be there at the concert?" Julie asked hopefully.

"Of course!" Squanchy butted in. "Just be squanch, Rick has some...squanches.."

Rick translated him for her again. "He's saying to be careful, because I-I have some fangirls. It's true, if they see us together, they might get a bit...mad...but I w-wouldn't worry too much about it if I were y-you."

This made Julie feel a tinge of jealousy, but she was able to shake it off. Rick was hers, and there was nothing the fangirls could do about it.

"Well..okay then.." She whispered back at him.

"If I may ask Julie, would you like to hear us play?" Birdperson asked.

Her face lit up at this. "Oh that would be a wonderful idea!"

She proceeded to watch the trio play a song for her, with Squanchy playing the drums, Rick playing the guitar, and Birdperson was singing.

Julie found herself very impressed, and clapping along. Most of her attention was, of course, on Rick, he just seemed so natural playing the guitar, and he was very skilled at it. Rick was a man of many talents clearly, and she loved it.

When it was over, Rick put the guitar down, and she ran up and hugged him. "Rick! You were amazing!" She beamed.

Rick grinned and hugged her back, while both Birdperson and Squanchy watched them, before smiling at each other. To them, it was already clear how much they loved each other. Julie was shy, but Rick managed to bring her out of her shell without even trying. After performing together, the trio and Julie ended up just hanging out and having fun together.

Later on, Birdperson decided to go over and talk to Rick alone. "Rick, it's good to see you have finally found a mate." He told him.

"Ah...y-you really th-think so? I-I-I mean.."

"Birdperson knows so, and knows what you're like. This is good for you, and I can see how much you two love each other, and how much of a good match you two are. Julie can help you, however, she can only do so much, but perhaps she will motivate you to become a better person."

Rick was silent from his words, unsure how to respond. Maybe Birdperson was right, and he had already been feeling much happier now that he was with her.

His thoughts were interrupted when he saw Julie walk over to them. "Do you think Rick and I can go explore this planet for a bit?" She asked Birdperson. "I love the nature here, your planet is so beautiful."

He nodded. "Go ahead."

Julie eagerly took Rick's hand and started to run off with him. Rick glanced back at Birdperson for a moment, before leaving with Julie.

* * *

Exploring the planet proved to be really fun, there was much terrain to venture through, such as valleys, hills and they wandered into an entire forest.

They came across a portion of the forest featuring a waterfall, with a bunch of flowers and a few rocks nearby. The two went to sit on a large rock together and watch the waterfall.

"I love it here, so much.." Julie sighed in content. "I hope we can come back here again sometime."

"Oh we will," Rick assured her. "Birdperson is a close friend of mine after all."

"That reminds me...is Birdperson really his name?" She asked while giggling.

"Naw," He chuckled. "I can never remember his real name, so I just call him Birdperson."

Julie smiled at him, and leaned her head against his shoulder, making him blush. It felt so romantic to be here with him, alone, with only the sounds of nature in the air.

A thought came into her head, and she decided to ask him about it. "So...you finally changed your mind on love?"

Rick huffed, crossing his arms, not saying a word.

"Do you still think it's just a chemical reaction?" She asked. "I wouldn't say that's a good argument. Technically, aren't all feelings chemical reactions in our brain? Why single out love?"

He became angrily flustered at this. "Well..it's just th-that..I…I d-don't...I-I don't get it...I-I.."

She kissed his cheek softly. "There's nothing wrong with being in love. Relying on others is important, it makes you strong, not weak, you have people that care about you and will be there for you when you need them. You have me, and I know you love me, I love you too, so much. It's alright.."

Rick didn't know what to say, so he resorted to kissing her lips roughly, and Julie accepted it, kissing him back.

"Julie...I need…I-I need you…" He breathed, starting to kiss down to her neck. "It's been too long...I just.."

"It's okay...I want to do this too.." She blushed, letting out a few moans as he continued to kiss her.

Julie understood that Rick was simply letting out his feelings for her, expressing them through his actions rather than his words. He wasn't good at talking about his feelings, and she didn't mind at all. This was his way of figuring out his emotions and dealing with them properly.

Besides, they hadn't done this for a bit, with Julie still having to deal with her headache and all, but she was better now, and so they could finally do this again.

Rick picked her up off the rock and laid her down on the grass, positioning himself over top of her. Julie gasped as he did so, and looked up at him. She saw the desire for her on his face, making her bite her lip.

He took off her clothes, until she was in just her bra and panties. She noticed the bulge in his pants, and watched as he too took off his clothes until he was just in his boxers. Rick went back to kissing her again, this time going right down to the tops of her breasts.

"Rick please…" Julie moaned desperately.

He snickered and decided to keep teasing her, continuing to kiss her cleavage while his hands inched towards the straps of her bra.

"Please...take if off.." She begged, gazing down at him.

He already loved hearing her beg for him, and so he decided to give in and unhooked the straps, freeing her breasts from their confines, which had barely fit in her bra anyway, looking like they would burst through at any moment.

Rick gripped onto her soft breasts and began gently fondling them before taking one of her nipples in his mouth and sucking on it. Julie moaned and held onto him, loving how the feel of him sucking on her aching nipples felt. He then made the move to lick them, inciting more needy moans from her.

Rick pulled his mouth away and gave her a wicked smirk, making Julie shudder with desire. He kissed her roughly, then placed himself in between her legs. He let out a growl, seeing how soaked her panties were. "You want me so fucking bad don't you? Want me to lick that sweet little pussy of yours until you cum?"

"Yes..I need this..." She pleaded.

With that, he pulled down her panties, and his cock became even more erect at the sight of her pussy. Rick began to lick it, hearing her cry out for him.

"Oh Rick!" Julie exclaimed, her back arching. "Uhh yes!"

He had missed her sweet taste, it still was as good as last time and he knew he'd never get enough of it, no matter how many times he did this. Hearing her delicate moans only made this better. Rick then began to let his tongue trace over her clit, swirling around it.

Hearing her needy moans was making him slowly lose it, he didn't know how much longer he could take until his control would break. Julie was a mess because of him, moaning and panting as if she was an animal in heat. It didn't help one bit, it only made it worse, but he couldn't stop.

Julie came on a scream, but Rick still went on licking her, and she managed to cum a few more times.

"Stop..please..I can't..ohh…" Julie begged, panting like crazy.

Rick complied, and moved over top of her again. She could see his hard cock between his legs, throbbing and pulsing, and still marvelled at how big he was.

"Julie…" He breathed. "Do you want me to fuck you?"

"I need you…" Julie arched her hips up, staring right at him with half-lidded eyes. "Please take me..please.."

His control was gone.

He grabbed onto her legs and spread them open before shoving his length inside of her, and thrusting wildly.

There was something so primal about being here in the middle of the forest to Julie, laying on the grass, the scents and sounds of nature surrounding her, all while making love to Rick. And she loved it, so much.

Rick continued to thrust, letting out a growl as he fucked her, claiming her as his once again. He loved the feel of her glistening folds, how wet and warm they were, how well his cock fit in it, as if their bodies were made for each other. She was still moaning and groaning for him as they fucked, their bodies close and connected, moving in rhythm together.

"Rick..I can't...I'm going to.." Julie moaned out, feeling so close to coming.

"Thats right Julie...cum for me.." He ordered.

And with that, she did, coating his cock with her cum.

Rick pulled out quickly and stroked his cock, coming all over her chest and stomach. He collapsed on the ground, laying beside her as his erection began to subside.

Julie lifted him up and snuggled against him, sighing in content. "I love you so much.."

Rick didn't respond, not even looking at her.

"I think I know what the problem is..you don't really understand love because you've never actually experienced it until meeting me." She concluded. "But I can help you understand, can't I?"

He nodded. "O-Of...of c-course.."

She smiled, and they shared a gentle kiss.

* * *

With that, Julie did do her best to try and help Rick understand love better, and she figured the best way to do it, was to let him gradually understand his feelings more and more.

They continued to spend time together, going on dates and adventures, which often doubled as both. Julie loved exploring and learning more about the galaxy from Rick, and she also enjoyed learning about the various alien cultures.

One of their most notable adventures was going to a resort along with Mark and Vivian, and having to deal with a psychopathic alien hitman. But that's for another time.

Julie and Rick were the happiest they'd ever been in their lives, everyday was a new adventure for them, and they both enjoyed it. As a result of their adventures, and Rick's presence, Julie was growing more confident, bold and assertive by the day. There was one time when Rick was fighting off an alien animal over top of him, and Julie knocked it off in retaliation.

She was also continuing to help Rick as well, getting him to brush his teeth each morning and each night, take showers, sleep more often and eat better. He was resistant at first, but slowly became motivated to improve and better himself because of her influence on him.

Julie had indeed also joined Rick, Birdperson and Squanchy on their next performance, and found herself enamoured with the way Rick looked in his "The Flesh Curtains" outfit. It was no surprise that they'd had sex after the performance. The fangirls weren't too much of an issue either, Rick just kinda had to push them away a little bit.

As time passed, Julie noticed that Rick was starting to become more open with his feelings, and did gain a better understanding of love, though he still wasn't a fan of the romance genre like Julie is. Instead of being a jerk about it like he used to, he just dealt with by pretending to enjoy it, or just not saying anything. There was a few times Julie would read aloud her romance novels to Rick, and he just listened without saying a word.

She had eventually asked Rick about his sexuality, thinking he was bisexual, but coming to find out he was actually pansexual. Julie didn't know what that meant at first, but after Rick explained it to her, she understood, and took no issue with it.

About Julie's parents..well...she'd been getting over it, and been handling their deaths better. She had kept a picture of her with them in her room, taken when she was a child, and now looked at the picture fondly rather than sadly.

* * *

A year after getting together, Rick had been wondering if he should propose to Julie. She was the hopeless romantic type, loved him dearly, and they'd been together for a while. He had never liked the idea of marriage, but knew Julie did, and thought she would want to marry him. Admittedly, he did was fond of the idea of Julie being his wife, and marriage did come with some benefits too…

But first, Rick wanted to be sure Julie was interested in marriage, and decided to ask about it one day out of the blue.

"So...I've been thinking, how do you feel about weddings? Me, personally? I hate them, they're boring as shit, drag on for too long."

Julie laughed and held onto his hand. "I've always wanted to get married, ever since I was a little girl. And now? Well...I think it would be nice..don't you?"

"M-Maybe…" He blushed.

She laughed more and cuddled up with him, hoping he had asked because he was interested in proposing to her. Julie loved the idea of being his wife and having him as her husband. She also didn't think the name "Julie Sanchez" sounded all that bad either, and she could finally have the wedding she'd always dreamed of. Plus, they would end up living together, and Julie loved the idea of waking up to Rick's handsome face every morning.

Though, knowing Rick, he'd find it boring and would want to make their wedding exciting, which Julie didn't mind at all, as long as they got married she would be happy, and she thought that his version would of their wedding would be a lot more fun anyways.

* * *

Eventually, Rick, despite his nerves about the idea, decided to propose.

Much like he had made her the pendant necklace, he wanted to make her the ring himself. He thought about it, and settled on making the ring a silver band with a heart-shaped amethyst gemstone on top. Of course, Rick knew he needed his own, so just made a simple silver band to match with hers.

With that, he placed the ring in a wooden box, and now had to decide how to propose.

An idea came into his mind, and Rick decided he would create and beautiful hologram displaying some of her favourite places in the galaxy, he knew she would love it.

The day finally came for him to propose, and Rick had cold feet about it, feeling very nervous about proposing, but he was able to gather his courage together as best as he could.

Rick took the wooden box and the device that displayed the hologram, and went off to find Julie. He smiled as he saw her, sitting on a couch in the living room, reading a book. She took notice of him, and smiled back, putting a bookmark where she left off, and walking over to him.

"What are you hiding behind your back Ricardo?" She asked curiously.

He grinned, and pulled out the device. Julie was even more curious now, and watched intently as he pressed a button, making a hologram displaying various planets appear.

Julie's eyes widened at the sight. "Oh Rick...this is so beautiful!"

"And that's not all." Rick winked, and revealed the wooden box, making her gasp.

He opened the box, showcasing the ring inside. It was then and there that Julie knew what she hoped was going to happen, was finally happening.

"You wanna get married?" He asked.

Tears of joy welled up in Julie's eyes, and she embraced him. "Yes! Of course I'll marry you!"

Rick laughed and gently pulled her off. "Do you want to put the ring on now?"

"Yes please!"

He took out the ring and put it on the ring finger on one of her hands. Julie stared at it in awe, she loved it so much, she was thrilled they were now each other's fiances. She couldn't wait to let Mark and Vivian know she was getting married.

She looked up and watched as Rick put his on too. Julie held onto his hand afterwards, and kissed him.

* * *

Later that day, Julie told Mark and Vivian that Rick had proposed to her, and they would be getting married soon. Mark had been excited, but Vivian was the opposite. She did agree to be a bridesmaid though.

Rick had also told Birdperson and Squanchy that he Julie were getting married, they were both very happy for him. Though, they did end up fighting over who would be the best man, and it ended up going to Birdperson much to Squanchy's dismay. Rick had laughed and promised to make it up to him during the bachelor party.

For that, Rick had surprisingly not been interested in going to a club or anything, saying his eyes were only on Julie. Instead, they decided to just get wasted at Birdperson's house. Julie had also insisted they bring Mark over, and Rick agreed to it much to his annoyance. As for the bachelorette "party", Julie and Vivian had just settled on something fun like bowling.

Rick had wanted to make the wedding actually fun, and Julie didn't mind at all. He had a bunch of crazy ideas, but Julie thought they shouldn't go too overboard, and he was okay with that. He was also okay with agreeing to more relaxed things Julie wanted, like the fact she really wanted to slow dance with him.

When the night before the wedding rolled around, Julie had found herself so ecstatic, that tomorrow she and Rick would become husband and wife. She felt like the luckiest girl in the multiverse, she had found her true love and it had turned out better than she'd ever imagined.

Julie looked at the wedding dress she'd bought, and was excited to see Rick's reaction to it. She was also excited to see him in his tuxedo, only imagining how attractive he'd look in it.

Rick on the other hand, was having cold feet about marrying Julie, still unable to imagine that she would be soon be his wife. How the hell did he get so damn lucky?

Despite his nerves, he was looking forward to the wedding, and everything he had planned out for it.

* * *

After everything was taken care of, and the parties were over, it was finally time for the wedding. Rick and Julie had decided to get married at the gemstone planet, where Rick had gotten her the crystal rose.

Rick had thought they couldn't just invite Birdperson, Squanchy, Mark and Vivian, so he decided to invite over some aliens he and Julie had met on their adventures, who were more than happy to come. They helped set up everything too. Vivian's family had even come as well.

Julie had finished putting on her wedding dress with Vivian's help. Even with her excitement, she was also a bit worried. "Do I look alright?" She asked.

Vivian blushed, and nodded. "You look fine."

She breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good..I just hope Rick will like it."

"I'm sure he will, don't worry about it."

"You're right, thank you Vivian."

Vivian's blush deepened. "I think it's time for you to head to the altar now."

"Of course! I just.." Julie sighed. "I wish my father was here, so he could walk me down the aisle."

Vivian gave her a sympathetic look. "Your dad was a great guy Julie, and I know he'd be happy for you."

Julie's frown turned into a smile, and she picked up her bouquet, which was made with crystal flowers from the planet. "Thank you again, it really means a lot to me.."

"Ah don't worry about it," Vivian brushed her off. "I think I should go sit down too, beside Mark and my parents. I don't trust any of the aliens here."

Julie laughed, watching her friend go and sit beside her family, as well as Mark. He had noticed she seemed nervous with the aliens around, and gently patted her back to comfort her.

Rick was getting cold feet again, still finding it unbelievable he was marrying Julie of all people, he didn't feel like he deserved her, at all.

Birdperson noticed him sweating and knew Rick was nervous about this. "Don't worry Rick, I know you're nervous about marrying Julie, but everything will be fine."

"That's not the problem Birdperson!" He exclaimed. "It's j-just...Julie is so perfect...like an angel...I-I don't deserve her love, I never h-have."

"Rick, you must stop thinking like that, you do deserve her, and she loves you so much." Birdperson assured him. "In all the time I've known you, you've never been all that happy until meeting Julie. She's very good for you, you know that."

Before Rick could respond, two little aliens walked down the aisle throwing petals from the crystal flowers. Then Julie followed behind, and as soon as Rick saw her, his jaw dropped and his heart was pounding.

She looked so elegant and beautiful in her wedding dress, it made him feel even less worthy of her. If he was being honest, he also thought the dress made her breasts look stunning.

Julie walked up beside him, admiring how handsome she thought he looked in his black tux, her heart was pounding too.

One of the aliens, who took the role of the minister(he apparently had the license to do so), began to speak. "This is a glorious day my friends, we are here today to unite these two as husband and wife!" He beamed, and Rick and Julie both heard clapping from the crowd. "But if anyone objects to this union, speak now." No one did thankfully. The alien continued. "Good, now begin with the vows. The bride can go first."

Though Julie was shy, her increased confidence and assertiveness made her feel better about saying her vows in front of the crowd. "My life has changed has so changed much since we met. When I'm with you, all my fears, worries and insecurities just disappear. Every moment we spend together makes feel so warm and loved, and when you hold me in your arms, I know I'm safe. You're the love of my life, my true love, my soulmate, and I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you."

Rick's face was beet red at her words. He turned over to the alien minister, who smiled and gestured to Rick. "Now it's the groom's turn."

He didn't want to do this, at all, but knew he had no choice. Rick decided to just ignore the crowd and the alien minister, just focusing on Julie. "Look, I'm not good with my words, so I'll be brief. Before you, I was...a-alone...miserable...de-depressed...filled with anger and hatred, but...e-everything has ch-changed..b-because of y-you…now everything feels so d-d-different, but i-in a good way."

Julie blushed from his words, and then suddenly heard crying. She turned her head over to the noise, and saw Mark comically in tears from their vows. She giggled a little, and turned back to Rick.

The alien minister spoke up again, focusing on Rick. "Do you take her to be your wife, til death do you part?"

"I-I do."

He nodded and turned to Julie. "Do you take him to be your husband, til death do you part."

"I do.."

The alien preacher faced the little aliens. "The rings?" They then handed them over to him, who handed them to Rick and Julie, and they then put their rings on each other.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife! You may kiss the bride."

As Rick grabbed Julie in for a passionate kiss, fireworks went off in the air, and the crowd cheered. Mark was also wiping away his tears.

After the kiss, Julie tossed the bouquet, which was grabbed by Vivian. She blushed upon realizing the implications of grabbing it, looking back at Mark for a moment before looking at her family. Her mother laughed. "Someday soon sweetie...someday soon.."

* * *

During the reception, Rick and Julie fed each other their wedding cake(made by Julie herself), and then shared a slow dance together.

Julie leaned her head against Rick's chest, feeling thrilled she could now call him her husband. He wrapped his arms around her waist as they danced, so happy and in love, glad he could call her his wife. Julie had also noticed Mark had gotten Vivian to dance with him, and Vivian's parents were dancing too.

When the dance was over, the excitement Rick had planned for began. He had brought a lot of stuff, like arcade games and even a bouncy castle just cause.

Julie ended up also having to advise Rick not to get too drunk, and he agreed, knowing what couples traditionally did on their wedding nights. The time had came to finally "consummate the marriage", and to her relief, Rick had listened and had only had a few drinks, making things much better.

* * *

The wedding had finished, and the couple left for a resort planet afterwards for their honeymoon. When the newlyweds returned to Earth, Rick packed up his things and moved in with Julie.

Living together brought lots of new things, but one that they both loved was sleeping together, and having each other be the first thing they saw in the morning.

A few months after getting married, Julie had finally decided to apply for becoming a nurse, and get managed to get the job! She'd been so happy that the first thing she did when she saw Rick was give him a tight hug.

Despite her happiness, something was gnawing at Julie and she couldn't ignore it: her desire for motherhood. She just hoped Rick be okay with becoming a father.

* * *

 **a/n: The hologram is meant to be that thing Morty shows Jessica in "Ricksy Business." Wonder why Rick still has it...**


	15. Chapter 15

After some time, Julie had finally decided she should tell Rick about her longing for motherhood. She had been thinking about it, and knew that it would make her even happier than she already was.

Julie had always wanted to be a mother, even as a child she had liked the idea. When she was a little girl, she would pretend to be the mother of her dolls and do things like put them to sleep in her bed or pretend to feed them. When she ended up finding out where babies really come from, and not sent by a stork, it did make her feel a little weird, but she quickly got over it, and still wanted to be a mother.

Now that she and Rick were married, Julie thought it was the right time to see if he was okay with being a father. She wasn't sure though, knowing Rick's….upbringing and all, and even if he said no, Julie didn't mind, because she knew as long as she had him, she would still be happy.

* * *

One day, Rick had noticed her sitting by the window, appearing solemn, and was worried for her. "What's wrong Gingersnap?" He asked.

Gingersnap was the pet name Rick had came up with to call Julie, and she adored it. He'd also call her variants on it like Gingerbeer or Gingerbread, she liked them too.

She turned her head over to him. "It's just..well..I don't know how you'd feel about this but...I want to have a baby with you."

Rick was surprised by this, and wasn't sure how to feel. He didn't know anything about being a father. "R-Really? With m-me?"

She nodded. "I've wanted this for so long, and we've been married for a fair amount of time so I was just thinking...but if you don't want this, that's okay."

Rick pressed his lips together, thinking for a moment. Despite the fact he knew nothing about parenting, Julie wanted to be a mother, and if she wanted something, he couldn't bring himself to say no to her. She had told him he could say no, but he didn't want to, Rick could tell being a mother would make her happy. "Alright."

"I thought you might say-" Then she realized what he'd actually said. "Wait what? You're okay with this? I didn't think.."

"You want to be a mother, so I'll let you be one. I want you to be happy." He explained.

She teared up a little, feeling so touched at his words. "Thank you so much Ricardo.." She then hugged him.

"Aw it's n-nothing…" He blushed.

"Sooo….when are we gonna start trying for a baby?" Julie asked.

"How about tonight?" Rick winked.

"Tonight it is."

* * *

They had relished in their lovemaking that night, with Julie getting Rick to cum in her multiple times just to be sure. Over the next week, it was the same thing too, where they'd have sex every single night.

They both enjoyed it, a lot, and Julie hoped their efforts would result in her becoming pregnant. She had also went out and bought a pregnancy test, and several books on parenting both she and Rick could read up on.

A few weeks later, Julie and Rick had what started as a normal day, getting up and eating breakfast together. She had made them both eggs, sausages and hash browns, and was pleased upon seeing how he no longer wolfed down his food anymore, though she did kinda miss it, it had showed how goofy he could be.

Now it seemed like the opposite, Rick watched as Julie wouldn't stop eating her breakfast, not even for a second, and it made him laugh. "You okay there Gingersnap?" He asked jokingly.

"I think so." She told him while eating, making him laugh more.

Julie wondered why was being like this, and wondered if it had to do with...wait...was she pregnant? She knew one of the symptoms was having cravings, and she had decided to make this breakfast in particular because she had been craving some sausages...she gasped. "I'll be right back sweetie." Julie said to Rick, getting off her chair and heading into the bathroom.

As she went there, she remembered that when she and Rick had made love a couple of days ago, her breasts had been more sensitive than usual, that was another symptom. Julie really did hope was pregnant..

After using it, Julie checked the results, and was overjoyed to see she was indeed pregnant.

She was so relieved, so filled with joy and happiness that her dream of being a mother was coming true. Julie placed a hand on her stomach and rubbed it a little, knowing her and Rick's baby was growing inside her. She knew now she had to go tell Rick the good news.

Julie ran out of the bathroom, pregnancy test in hand, and over to Rick. "I have great news!"

"What is it?" He asked.

She showed him the pregnancy test, and his eyes widened. "We're having a baby!" She announced.

"Oh, that's great.." Rick's voice sounded less than thrilled.

"What's the matter Rick?" Julie asked. "Are you nervous about becoming a father?"

He nodded. "Yeah...I-I just...I-I-I don't know anything at all about being a d-dad. I won't k-know what the hell I'm doing."

"I understand, knowing what your childhood was like and all, but I can help you. I bought books on parenting you can read, its generally geared towards mothers, but a lot of it can apply to fathers too. You'll also have me there to help you when you need it." She assured him.

"I guess so...the only problem is, you have a job, you won't always be there." Rick said sadly.

"Don't worry, if you ever don't know what to do, you can either look at the books, or just call me. It'll be fine." Julie smiled, placing a hand on his shoulder.

He smiled back. "Sounds good." Then he kissed her. "Now that you're pregnant though, just try to be careful okay? Don't wanna lose the baby and all.."

She laughed. "I'll be okay Rick, don't worry about me."

"But I can't help it," He grinned. "I'm just trying look to out for you, you know."

"I know, and it's very sweet of you, but at the most, I've only been pregnant for a few weeks. You only need to be worried when my belly gets bigger."

He gulped, making Julie laugh again.

* * *

Julie had told Mark and Vivian she was pregnant, and both were happy for her, she'd even told some of her co-workers as well, and they were happy for her too(though in the few times they'd seen Rick, they thought he was freaky, but never said anything about it).

For the first few months, things didn't really change all that much. Julie still went to work as normal, and though she was a little cautious at times, she still acted mostly the same as always. Rick acted protective though, despite Julie saying otherwise, but thought it was sweet regardless, he also was acting more affectionate than usual.

The big differences were what came with her pregnancy. She had to deal with morning sickness at times, which worried Rick, who would always end up advising her to stay home from work, which she tended to agree to. Julie also dealt with cravings, and sometimes Rick would find her eating something in the kitchen in the middle of the night, and sometimes he'd join her. Not only that, but Julie was often far more tired too, and Rick again insisted she stay home, which she did occasionally. There was also the diet changes that came with it, but Julie already ate healthy, so there wasn't much of a difference there.

As the weeks had passed by, Rick was reading those books she'd bought him, feeling more panicked about his inevitable fatherhood as time went on. Julie on the other hand, was still as excited as ever to be a mother, having no problems with at all. Of course, she was a bit nervous and worried about it at times, but her eagerness surpassed those feelings. Julie had wanted to be doing some shopping for the baby on her time off, but decided to wait until they knew the gender of the baby, it would narrow the choices down.

Speaking of which, when the time was right, and Julie did have an ultrasound to find out the baby's gender, she and Rick found out they were having a girl. With this revelation, Julie had started to buy things for the baby, including furniture for the baby's room.

The house they lived in had a spare room, which neither had really used, so they decided it would be good for the baby's room.

When all was ready, they just thought up names too, and had ended up settling on the name Beth.

The months passed on, and Julie's belly was getting bigger, making her feel a bit self-conscious about her appearance, but Rick was there to make her feel better, which worked out well.

* * *

It was now nine months into her pregnancy, and both knew Beth could arrive any day now.

One day, they were simply relaxing at home, with Rick keeping a protective arm around Julie.

But while they did this, Julie started to feel a contraction, then another. It hit her then and there that the baby was coming. "Rick..I think the baby is coming.." She warned him.

Rick instantly began to panic. "Oh no, oh shit, shit, fuck, fuck!"

He then gently picked up Julie, and used his portal gun to bring them to the nearest hospital, which also happened to be the one Julie worked at, where she was taken to the maternity ward. Rick had been annoyed the doctors wouldn't let him see Julie, so he ended up in a really bad mood while waiting, and gave anyone who passed by him an angry glare.

When enough time passed, a doctor came out and told him he could see Julie, and he eagerly did so.

He stepped into the room and saw Julie, a few of her fellow nurses nearby her, holding a pink bundle in her arms. His eyes widened, as he walked over to Julie, who was smiling sweetly at him. Rick was soon close enough, and his face softened when he saw their newborn baby.

Julie noticed the look in his eyes. "Do you wanna hold her?" She asked. Rick nodded, and she handed Beth over to him.

As he held in her arms, all of his previous worries and fears about being a father seemed to fade away. After nine months of waiting, his baby girl was finally here, and he was finally holding her for the rest time. Of course, the nerves he had felt about the whole thing hadn't completely faded away, but he did feel better holding her, feeling nothing but love and warmth for his daughter. Rick knew he would always protect her from harm, worrying his enemies might try and come after her. Julie had been his only weakness for a while, but now Beth was one of his weaknesses too, and much like with her mother, he'd kill anyone that tried to hurt her. It was a good thing he'd put some top notch security in his and Julie's house(even before moving in too, a way to keep her safe while he wasn't there).

Rick eventually put Beth back in Julie's arms, and stayed with the two of them a little longer, before he was forced to leave, much to his anger. He knew the doctors had to check on them both to make they were healthy enough to leave.

* * *

Julie returned home with Beth the next day, and when Rick saw them again, he went up to them and kissed Julie on the forehead. "So I guess it went well huh? He asked.

"Yep, and I knew it would anyways; I was doing just fine during my pregnancy after all, labour wasn't too bad either." She responded.

"How did you get back home anyways? Did y-y-you have to w-walk?"

"Thankfully no, one of my fellow nurses, Carol, drove me and Beth home in her car. She insisted that I shouldn't have to walk home, and questioned me on why you didn't drive me to the hospital." Julie explained. "I asked her if she saw something glowing green and she said yes, I told her that that's how you brought me there. She was confused, but didn't ask any more questions. You know my co-workers are terrified of you."

"Aw, why's that?" Rick playfully asked.

"Remember that time when you found out a doctor at the hospital I work at was flirting with me? When you stormed in, you ended up scaring everyone with how threatening you were being towards him."

He snickered. "Doesn't help that I was giving everyone a death stare at the hospital while waiting for y-you."

She just laughed, and looked down at Beth. "You know, while you were gone, I was thinking about all the potential Beth has. You're her father, a genius, and not an ordinary one either but instead the smartest man in the universe! I bet your smarts passed onto her."

"Wouldn't be surprised, I'm sure you're right that she'll be a gifted kid just like I was." Rick smiled.

She smiled back, but then a concerned look appeared on her face. "I am worried about something though...what if she gets bullied? I mean...she could get bullied for mixed race and all..I don't know..I just…"

"It's alright, I get it. Unlike with us, I'll make sure Beth is strong, confident and assertive so she'll stand up to her bullies and defend herself." He assured her.

Julie glimpsed back down at Beth, stroking her soft features. "That sounds good, maybe she'll take after you in terms of her personality."

"M-Maybe she will…"

* * *

Julie was only given six weeks of maternity leave, and she did her best to make those six weeks count. She had settled on bottle feeding, so that Rick could feed the baby too, she wouldn't always be around after all. Julie taught Rick things like how to properly feed the baby with the bottle, and heating up the bottle. When it came to changing diapers, Rick just made an invention to do it for him, and Julie didn't blame him at all.

Rick had been annoyed by hearing the sound of crying constantly in the middle of the night, but regardless, if Julie didn't wake up, he would still be very gentle with Beth until she managed to fall asleep.

He was also annoyed that he and Julie couldn't have sex during the entirety of her maternity leave, and though he knew it was because her needed those six weeks to go back to normal, it still bothered him. Knowing this, Julie did promise she'd make it up to him, which she did.

The first time Julie left for work again, Rick felt lost without her help. When Beth started to cry, he felt panicked, but much to relief, feeding her had calmed her down. Even though he didn't know what to do without her, he managed to take care of Beth well.

The months went on, and Beth had grown quite the fondness towards Rick. She would happily coo every time she saw him, and would reach out for him to hold her. Her first word was even "dada", and after she'd initially said it, she went on gleefully repeating it. Rick would make simple inventions for her to play with, like miniature version of the hologram he'd used to propose to Julie with, which never failed to fascinate Beth.

Beth adored her mother as well, and hated whenever she left for work, and when Julie returned, Beth would reach out for her to hold her. Julie was very affectionate towards Beth, and would often hug and kiss her, making Beth laugh and coo in delight.

There was also that time Julie had brought Mark and Vivian over to see Beth, but it didn't go over well as Mark had accidently scared Beth, but he'd managed to get along with her well eventually.

* * *

As Beth grew older, she was a happy and curious little girl who followed Rick everywhere when she could, always wanting to get into his things. Rick ended up letting her come on adventures with him, only to realize she was starting to display violent and sociopathic-like tendencies, and immediately stopped. One day after school, he'd found her with a dead animal and scolded her for it before cloning it. He ended up making her, her own little world called Froopyland, which she loved.

It was at this point that Rick became more distant with Beth, and it reached the point where she hardly saw him. She ended up having to draw him into family photos because he was just never there(though strangely Beth noticed her mother never realized this), and she hated it. Regardless, Beth preferred Rick over Julie now, as he was, to her, "really amazing and cool" and found her mother was boring and paled in comparison to Rick.

One morning, Beth found Julie and Rick talking to each other in the kitchen, and started listening to what they were saying.

'What happened to you sweetheart? You've got a nasty scar on your face. Have you been going on adventures by yourself or something?"

"I'm fine Gingersnap, don't worry about me. Just ran into a little trouble, that's a-all."

"Rick, please...you need to be looking after Beth."

"I know it's just...something's not right with her, she's dangerous.."

"She's fine, and if you do think she's dangerous, you need to do something about it."

"..I-I will.."

Just then, Beth poked her head in. "Mom, stop being mean to dad!"

Julie was both surprised and confused. "Mean? Sweetie, what are you saying?"

"Dad is perfectly fine as he is, you should leave him be you big meanie!" Beth retorted.

"Beth! Don't talk to your mother that way!" Rick snarled. "Go to your room!"

Beth 'hmphed' and did as she was told.

Julie was at a loss for words, and Rick could tell she was upset. "It's okay Gingersnap..don't worry about it.."

She sniffled a little. "I don't understand what I did wrong.."

"Y-You didn't do anything wrong at all." He assured her, kissing her cheek. "I don't know what her deal is, but she needs to stop w-with that attitude."

Julie felt crushed that Beth didn't seem to like her very much, it hurt her a lot. For so long she had wanted to be a mother, and now her child hated her guts for some reason.

She was aware of Beth's more eccentric behaviours, but chose to ignore them because she hated the idea of her own little girl basically being a sociopath. Beth had killed other children before if they were mean to her, and in general, she scared off other children with her behaviour. Julie knew Beth was a lonely child, and she did as best as she could to be there for her, but Beth always pushed her away in favour of Rick.

Julie hoped that Beth would grow of her sociopathic tendencies, and her dislike of her eventually, what would it take for her to see how much Julie truly loved her?

* * *

 **a/n: Thank fucking god for "The ABCs of Beth", now I don't have to make up shit up. The episode saved me and gave me so much to work with...and one of Rick's lines near the end reinforces my belief he still loves his wife.**

 **So, Julie finally achieves her dream of being a mother and what happens? Bam! Her kid fucking hates her, ouch.**

 **Originally, i had it so Beth and Julie had a good relationship, but then i found a quote by one of the co-creators of Rick and Morty, Dan Harmon, stating that Beth found her mother boring and unremarkable. there's some other stuff too we'll get into in chapter 16.**

 **I saw that Rick has strangely good table manners, like watch the breakfast scene from the pilot episode. I thought since it was so odd, that I could make Julie teach Rick good table manners, and him still having them shows she still influences him.**

 **And I got the idea for Rick having a security system in the house inspired by the episode "Total Rickall".**

 **Also, Rick and Julie canonically married in 1979, their 40th anniversary is next year..too bad Julie isn't around to celebrate it..**

 **(btw yes i did my research and i saw ultrasounds used for pregnant woman in use since the 1960s, and pregnancy tests as we know them since the late 1970s, and this would be in the early 1980s. and yes, women back then only did get six weeks maternity leave, and until 1978, you got fired while being pregnant on the job)**


	16. Chapter 16

**a/n:This chapter is depressing as fuck, I'm just going to warn you head on.**

* * *

Even though Rick had started a family with Julie, he still had been continuing his criminal activity from time to time. He was getting in some hot water with the Galactic Federation, but just kinda ignored it. His focus was still on making time for Julie, and Beth sometimes too.

Julie wasn't even aware of the existence of the Froopyland, though when Beth ended up having to deal with trauma, she had never known what caused it. She did know a boy Beth had brought over named Tommy had disappeared, but Julie never thought too much of it as his father was convicted of cannibalizing him, and wondered if that was the cause. The therapy Beth received did seem to have removed any trace of her sociopathic tendencies at least, which Julie was grateful for. Julie had also never known of Rick's negligence towards Beth, and assumed he was around while she was gone.

Despite all of this, Rick and Julie continued to maintain a happy and healthy marriage, their love was as strong as ever. They still shared a loving and intimate relationship, and always wore their wedding rings. Julie also always wore the lilac pendant necklace Rick had made for her years ago, she had started doing so commonly after they'd gotten married.

Unfortunately, Rick trying to fight back against the Galactic Federation, who were becoming a dominant force in the galaxy, was landing him in even more trouble than ever before. Rick had also been getting Birdperson's and Squanchy's help, and the trio had been labelled as terrorists. A war was emerging, Rick's enemies were coming for him, so what could he do? He was incredibly worried for both Beth and Julie's safety, and didn't want the Feds to come after them, so he started leaving more and more, and longer too. Julie actually took notice this time, and decided she had to talk to him about it. Unknown to both of them, Beth had been listening in.

"Rick, why have you been going out more often? I worry about you."

"D-Don't worry about it Julie, everything is fi-fine."

There was a sigh. "Rick...I can't sacrifice our family's well being just because I'm afraid you'll leave again. Please, don't go."

"I-It's okay, you deserve better than this, better than me anyways."

"What? Don't talk like that! I love you and I don't want anyone but you."

Beth watched as Rick looked down and took her hands in his. "We're in a lot of danger right now, I'm just looking out for y-you." Then he kissed Julie and walked away.

Beth said nothing this time, and hung her head down before leaving to her room.

Julie wondered what exactly was going on with him, and wondered if perhaps them being in danger was related to him being a criminal. Rick had made a lot of enemies over the years, and thought there could be a correlation. She was so concerned for him, she loved him so much and just hoped he would be okay.

The truth was that Rick wanted to spend time with his family, but it wasn't an option. With the emerging war with the Federation, he knew he had to protect them, but how? He decided that leaving was the best thing he could do for them, they would be okay, the Feds wouldn't come after them, but he would be separated for them, though thankfully only temporarily.

On the day he planned to leave, he spent it with Julie and Beth, making them both very happy. That night, he and Julie had made love together too.

After their session of love making, Julie was laid on top of Rick, both completely naked and content. "I'm glad you spent the whole with Beth and I, it means a lot to me."

"Well, you know, I just felt like I-I was spending too much time away from you two. I thought I-I should make up for it." He partially lied.

"I'm not sure why you keep leaving but...I hope you keep this up when you can, I'd really appreciate it, Beth too; you know how much she loves spending time with you." Julie told him.

Rick frowned. He could tell her what was going on, but he didn't want her to worry, it was best she didn't know. "Me too.." He muttered, really wanting to do something like this again, but how long would the war even last. He didn't know when he would get to see her again.

"I love you so much.." She happily sighed, nestling further against him.

"...I-I l-l-love you to-too.." Rick then kissed her sweetly.

After the kiss, Julie noticed Rick didn't seem happy, worrying her. "Is everything okay?" She asked. "Please talk to me…"

"Everything is...f-fine.." He brushed her off.

"No, everything's not fine. I want to know what's going on with you." She responded.

He couldn't tell her what was going on, so he gave her an incomplete answer. "Some real bad shit has been happening right now, I'm just trying to look after you and Beth."

Though Julie wasn't exactly sure what he meant by this, she wondered if there really was an enemy of his trying to come after him. "Well..okay.."

Rick didn't want to leave, but he felt like he didn't have much of a choice. He couldn't imagine what would happen to her once she realized he wouldn't be back for a very long time, he knew she would be devastated, filled with so much grief and anguish, and it would be all his fault.

He glimpsed down at her. Even though they were both in their 40s, Julie was as beautiful as the day he met her. Rick ran his fingers through her hair, wishing to stay so badly, to be with her forever, but he couldn't. He decided to share on final kiss with her, holding onto her soft face and kissing her for as long as he could. When they pulled away, he saw nothing but love and warmth in her eyes, but how long would it last?

When Julie fell asleep, Rick quietly eased out of bed. He pulled out his portal gun and created a portal, but before he left through it, he gave one final glance to her sleeping form. With the image burned into his mind, he was gone.

* * *

In the morning, when Julie awoke, she saw Rick was gone, but she'd expected it. What she didn't expect however, was for Rick to be gone for weeks, that wasn't like him, where was he?

The weeks turned into months and Rick was still nowhere in sight, he hadn't even contact her either. Although Julie was incredibly concerned and worried for him, longing for his return, she did have a feeling that he'd left to protect her and Beth from harm, remembering the last thing he'd said to her before leaving.

It didn't soften the ache in her heart though, she missed him more than words could describe. Julie longed for husband to be with her again, to feel his touch, to taste his kisses and hold him close once again.

Without Rick, Julie was a shell of her former self, she felt incomplete, lost, alone and empty. Rick had made her stronger, more confident, brave and assertive. But now that he was gone, Julie felt like she was the person she had been before meeting him, lonely, weak, passive and with a void in her heart that she couldn't fill, no matter how hard she tried.

While at work, Julie did her best to act like everything was normal, but her fellow nurses could tell something was wrong, and once they learned Rick had left her out of the blue, they said things Julie loathed.

"Honey, your husband left you, it's time to stop moping around and find another guy." One suggested.

"I can't..I still love him more than anything. If I got involved with another guy, I'd feel like I was cheating on him." Julie explained.

"Oh please, how can you love someone who abandoned you? He clearly wasn't that great of a guy to begin with if he did that." Another butted in.

"You don't even know him, not like how I did, he was always the one for me." Julie retorted.

"Stop making excuses for someone like that! You need to move past this! I know a great single man your age who was recently divorced and-"

"No! Leave me alone!" Then she was off.

She could never stop loving him, no matter what. Even now, Julie was still devoted to him, not wanting to be with anyone else. Her co-workers just couldn't understand, so she tried talking to Mark and Vivian about it. Although Vivian was confused as to why Julie still loved Rick, both she and Mark sympathized with her. Mark had also lent her antidepressants in case she needed them.

* * *

It seemed, as the years passed on, that Julie really had needed them. She was even more of a shell of her former self, her hair colour had dulled, and she no longer wore purple, but black instead, the only purple thing left she wore was her lilac pendent and wedding ring. Her feelings of sadness had never left her, in fact, they'd gotten worse.

Beth had been affected by Rick's departure too, and had noticed the change in her mother, yet she was not sympathetic. She still saw her mother as mundane and unremarkable, she believed Rick had gotten bored of her, and so left, Beth blamed her mother for Rick leaving, and took her anger out on her. Julie could see Beth had been just as badly affected by Rick leaving as she was, but everytime she tried to help, Beth rejected her and pushed away. Having her daughter and only child being so cruel towards her only worsened her feelings of sadness, loneliness and isolation.

Things took a turn when Beth turned 17, and prom night rolled around. Julie had warned her to be careful, but Beth, being a teenager and all, hadn't listened. She slept with a boy at her school named Jerry, who happened to have a massive crush on her, and had gotten pregnant.

Though Julie had been understandably disappointed in her, she wasn't angry, not even at Jerry either. She had given Beth the choice of either aborting the baby or keeping it, and initially Beth had decided to abort. So, Julie had driven her and Jerry off to the abortion clinic, but after getting a flat tire on the way to there, Jerry had convinced Beth otherwise, who decided to keep the baby. Julie was surprised, but still happy nonetheless, and expressed her joy at becoming a grandmother, even if it was rather early.

* * *

When the baby was born, it had been girl who Beth and Jerry had named Summer. Julie had instantly taken a shine to her granddaughter, and would look after her while Beth and Jerry went to school. Though, Beth was a little iffy about it, neither she nor Jerry knew anything about being parents, and she didn't trust Jerry's parents, so Julie was the next best thing.

Unfortunately, it hadn't taken long for Julie's poor mental health to start affecting her physically. She wasn't doing so well, so Beth had her hospitalized. She stayed there as the months passed, but didn't improve, in fact, she was getting worse. When Beth heard this news, she didn't how to feel, on one hand she blamed Julie for Rick leaving, but on the other, Julie was her mother, and she had helped look after Summer. She believed her mother was going to die, and in that case, what was she going to do without her?

Sadly, it seemed Beth had been right. Julie didn't have much time left to live, and so Beth, along with Mark and Vivian were coming to pay one final visit to her.

When they arrived in her room, they saw a few other nurses leave the room, clearly upset about Julie's inevitable passing. Beth saw her mother, laying on the hospital bed, a heart monitor connected to her, she looked noticeably weak and frail.

Julie turned to Beth, giving her a weak smile. "I'm happy you're here Beth.." She told her, her voice showing how sick she was.

"Mom I.." Beth paused for a moment. "I can't forgive you for making Dad leave.."

Mark and Vivian shot her a glare, and Julie seemed visibly upset. "I didn't...I love your father more than anything.."

"Clearly it wasn't mutual."

"That's enough Beth." Vivian scolded her sharply. "She doesn't need this in her final moments, leave her be."

Hearing Vivian's words did work, as Beth stayed silent. She stayed in a corner, watching Mark and Vivian talk to her.

"Can you believe her? Your own damn daughter and she talks to you like that." Vivian huffed.

"It's alright, she's just angry, she's a teenager, she's dealing with a lot of emotions right now."

"Doesn't excuse the things she said."

Beth was surprised that her mother still treated her so well, and was still so forgiving, patient and understanding towards her. How did she do it?

Vivian spoke up again. "And you said...you still love Rick...even now..?"

Julie modded. "Before I met Rick, I was lonely, and longing for love and happiness. He gave me that and more, I grew more brave and assertive, he showed me the galaxy, I married him and we had Beth. He's still my soulmate, my true love, I'll never see him again, unless there's an afterlife..but that's okay..I have no regrets, I lived my life to the fullest, and I can die peacefully."

Beth was amazed that even after all this time, her mother harbored affection for her father and still believed they were meant to be together. It made sense at least, but she herself wasn't so forgiving, even though she still loved Rick too.

Mark and Vivian said nothing, not exactly sure what to even say to begin with. It was clear to them that Julie's love for Rick was just that strong, it would never break, no matter what.

To their horror, they watched as Julie leaned back against the pillow, her heartbeat going flat, then, she was dead, a smile on her face.

The two broke down into sobs, as Beth herself began to shed tears as well.

* * *

After the funeral, Beth realized that she couldn't stay in Michigan, it held too many painful memories for her. Jerry understood, and so they, along with Summer, left for Washington state, in a city near Seattle.

Though Beth and Jerry tried to raise Summer on their own, they were clueless on how to be parents, and so they weren't exactly the greatest at looking after her. It was around this time when Beth finally realized how much her mother meant to her, and how much she missed and loved her. All this time, she'd been cruel and had taken her for granted, but now she just wanted her back in her life again.

Things remained okay at least, and a few years later a baby boy named Mortimer, or just Morty for short, was born.

It was around this time that the war had died down, and so Rick decided to leave and return home, intent on seeing Julie and Beth again. But when he returned to their old home, he found a "For Sale" sign in the front yard. Had they moved?

He used a tracking device and was able to locate Beth, but Julie was apparently located in a nearby graveyard. Rick didn't want to assume the worst yet, so didn't go there, and instead went off to find Beth.

When he found Beth, she didn't exactly seem all that thrilled to see him again, she missed her father but was angry he'd left, all the while she was holding onto a baby Morty. "Where were you?" She growled.

"I…" He sighed. "What happened to your mother?"

Beth's face paled. "She's...she's gone Dad, she died a few years ago."

In that moment, Rick's world had shattered into a million pieces. The woman he loved so much, who had always been there for him when he needed her, had never doubted him, had trusted him and shown him love and kindness for the first time in his life, was gone. That graveyard the tracking device said she was must be where she was buried.

Rick went to visit it, and had found Julie's gravestone, which fittingly had an angel on it, and it looked as if she'd been buried right next to her parent's shared gravestone. He broke into tears, he had tried so hard to protect her, but she had died anyways. What was he going to do without her, his other half?

He brushed his tears away and stormed off, never would he allow himself to get attached to anyone ever again. The pain Julie's death was causing him was unbearable, he couldn't afford to deal with it ever again. From now on, he decided to disregard his attachments, he could never love again.

To deal with his pain, Rick had settled on alcohol; every time he drank it, all his misery and pain disappeared, he didn't have to think about how much he missed Julie, the loss of sanity brought on by his adventures, his trauma from the war and his childhood, none of it mattered anymore. So, he sunk into alcoholism, and went back to his old ways, except now he was even worse than before. He was far more cruel, arrogant, selfish, irresponsible and bloodthirsty. Though he couldn't ignore the thought of how Julie would think of him if she saw him now.

Rick came up with a way to try and get over Julie: one night stands and casual relationships, he was sure it would help! But it didn't, every time he would think he was moving on, he thought about Julie, and much he missed having her close, no one could compare to her, and that made things worse. He couldn't move on, no matter how hard he tried.

The years passed, and his loneliness was consuming him, so he decided to try and soften the ache by moving back in with his family. Beth was now eager to have him back in her life, but had developed severe abandonment issues and was deathly scared of Rick leaving, so never set any rules for him. She hoped to reconnect, but Rick had taken a shine to Morty.

He saw many similarities between Julie and Morty, like how shy, cute and awkward they both were, so decided to take Morty on adventures with him, just like what he and Julie used to do together. Although, unlike Julie, Morty started out being very resistant to adventures, but he did grow to be okay with it as time passed, even though Rick's adventures had the tendency to be traumatizing. Rick had become more out of control, which is why he tended to go on more dangerous adventures than he ever did with Julie.

Something that frustrated Rick was that Morty didn't admire him, at all, not like Julie did. She had loved spending time with him, but Morty didn't always go along with Rick and argued with him. He seemed to view him as a bad person, Rick didn't blame him, but it still hurt. He wanted Morty to understand him like Julie did, and know he's not all bad, but it would mean revealing his feelings. He wouldn't let his guard down. At the end of the day, Rick still loved and cared about Morty, but he refused to admit it most often. He had opened up to Julie and had been extremely close with her, but now she was gone, he wasn't repeating that mistake again.

Though, only time could tell what was in store for him in the future.

* * *

 **a/n: OKAY FIRST OF ALL...I cried writing Julie's death scene, okay? I had to stop myself a few times cause I was crying so much, no joke. Maybe cause I was listening to sad music too but that's irrelevant.**

 **Now...I have to explain some things. First of all, I know Rick was gone for 20 years, but there's a picture of him holding baby Morty in "Get Schiwfty", and a memory of him picking up baby Morty in "Close Rick-Counters of the Rick Kind". From my understanding, "Morty's Mind Blowers" had a deleted scene showing Rick with baby Morty. Also with Diane, I like the theory of her being Rick's sister, but it kinda messes with the backstory he has here, so I opted with the theory that she's the mother of Annie from the episode "Anatomy Park". I liked the theory of the flashback actually being based on what happened to Simple Rick from "The Ricklantis Mixup", just altered slightly.**

 **Also, if you want to know what happened to Mark and Vivian..they are still alive and doing well, they are grandparents themselves and are quite happy with their lives, even though they still miss Julie dearly.**

 **The story is complete, chapter 17 is merely an epilogue that will reveal what happened to Pyri.**


	17. Epilogue

**a/n: A short epilogue here, featuring Rick, Morty and Summer.**

* * *

Rick had been looking for a powerful fuel source, and remembered the one on Fyralog, perhaps the crystal was still there? It was certainly worth a shot.

Taking Morty along with him as normal, they were flying around on Rick's ship, looking for the remains of Fyralog. Rick grinned excitedly when they finally come upon Fyralog, and landed on it. The planet look barren, desolate and deserted, the buildings destroyed and there was no life in sight.

"Jeez Rick, what happened here?" Morty asked nervously.

"This Morty, is all that's left of the Fyralogin Empire, once the dominant force in the galaxy before it collapsed and was replaced by the F-Feds." Rick explained. "But g-guess who took it down? Me!" He proudly proclaimed, pointing to himself.

"You took down an entire e-empire?" Morty responded in shock.

"Hell yeah dawg! Years ago I stole a chunk of the fuel source we're here for, they tried to get it back but it collapsed before they could!" Rick laughed.

He knew he shouldn't be surprised, this was Rick after all. But to know he took down an entire empire single handedly? It was both shocking and amazing.

"So...why are we here now Rick?" He wondered.

"To get the another chunk of that fuel source obviously! What else would we come here for?" He hissed. Morty realized that maybe he shouldn't have asked.

* * *

As the duo wandered together, Morty found himself really creeped out by the place. The combination of the lack of life when there clearly had been some at one point, the broken and boarded up buildings and the feelings of emptiness made him uneasy. "This place is really cr-cr-creeping me out Rick.." He mumbled.

"Don't be a baby Morty, y-you've been to worse places, this'll be cake." Rick brushed him off. Morty sighed and continued walking with him.

He started to realize they were headed towards the large building in the center, and so figured that the fuel source must be in there.

When they arrived in the building, it was completely dark, so Rick took out a flashlight and turned it on, using it to help him look around and traverse the building. Morty clung onto his lab coat as they walked, even more frightened than before.

As they walked around, they saw a green glow and headed towards it, where they the crystal-like fuel source, Even now, it still had broken and mangled wires connecting to it.

"Jackpot!" Rick grinned, pumping a fist in the air.

But as soon as he started heading towards it, a figure with two pairs of golden glowing eyes appeared in the darkness. Startled, Rick used the flashlight to get a better look at the figure, and wasn't surprised when he saw it was Pyri, the former empress of the Fyralogin Empire. There was a look of pure malice and insanity on her face, which made sense, she had been here, alone in the darkness for decades.

"You.." She snarled, glaring at Rick. "You took everything from me! My planet, my people, my empire, my pride.."

Rick ignored her and she watched as he took out another of the crystal. Her eyes wandered around and landed on Morty, and she became confused, unsure who he was. Pyri had expected to see Julie, but she wasn't there. She'd never seen what Julie actually looked like, but assumed she would've seen a woman around Rick's age, not whoever this was.

"Where is Julie?" Pyri asked, making Rick stop dead in his tracks. When she didn't get a response, she asked again. "I asked you, where is Julie? What happened to her?"

Rick still wasn't responding, which gave her a hint on what had happened. "Oh I see, so she's dead huh? Did you kill her or something?"

At this, Morty noticed he was shaking and had a horrified expression on his face. He wasn't sure who Julie was exactly, but knew whoever she was, she must've been important to Rick.

"So you did kill her after all huh? Should've known...she loved you and killed her!"

Morty didn't know what to do when he saw Rick clench his fists as he started to tear up.. Something was wrong…

Pyri kept egging Rick on and taunting him. "Poor sweet Julie, you dragged her into your bullshit and tricked her into loving you. She died because of you, it's all your fault!"

Rick snapped at this, and pulled out a weapon with him. "No!" He screamed as he shot her. "I didn't do it! I didn't do it! I didn't…" When Pyri collapsed dead on the ground, Rick sat down on his knees and sobbed.

Morty was concerned and worried for him, what was he supposed to do now? He didn't want to stay here any longer and so tugged on Rick's shoulder to get his attention. "W-We should go Rick…"

Rick looked over at him and wiped his tears away. "Yeah...whatever.."

* * *

On their back, Rick and Morty were both silent, neither saying a word to each other. What could they even say? Morty had seen Rick in such a vulnerable moment, he had let his emotions get the best of him, he wanted to avoid doing something like that again.

Morty nervously rubbed one of his arms and glanced over at Rick. "Rick...whose Julie?"

Rick clenched his fists on the steering wheel of the ship, tightening his grip on it. "Shut up, just shut up...:" He growled before looking away.

Morty knew he wasn't going to get an answer out of Rick, so he thought on his own who Julie could be. She was someone clearly very important to him, who was also dead. With this, Morty wondered if Julie was his grandma. He'd never met, seen or even heard of his grandma before, no one seemed to want to talk about her, there was no pictures of her in the house, but why? Considering Rick's reaction to her being mentioned and all, maybe it was just too hard to talk about her. Though Morty was curious about Julie, he wasn't sure if he would ever get to learn about her, he hoped he could though someday.

* * *

When they returned to Earth, Rick immediately went up into his room, refusing to even look at anyone. Summer had seen this and walked over to Morty, just as confused as he was. "Uh...what's wrong with Grandpa Rick?" She asked.

"I...I don't know.." Morty admitted. "When we went to go get something on another planet, someone there mentioned a person named Julie, she told Rick that he caused Julie's death and he freaked out and killed her. He wouldn't say a-anything about it on our way b-back."

Summer was surprised by this. "What? Really? Who do you think Julie could be?"

"I was thinking that she's our gr-grandma. I mean...with Rick's reaction and all, I think she was important to him, but she died…" He answered.

"Makes sense, it would explain a lot wouldn't it?"

"Yeah...I just h-hope either R-Rick or Mom will want to tell us s-something about her eventually.."

* * *

Rick sat alone on his bed, tears flowing down his face. When he had brought Morty to Fyralog with him, he hadn't thought Pyri would even be there, he presumed she'd died, but he'd been wrong unfortunately, at least until he'd killed her himself. But he should've known better...he'd came there for his own personal gain, and Pyri had ended up blaming him for Julie's death.

The truth was that Rick did actually blame himself for Julie's death. He felt if he hadn't left her all those years ago, that she would still be alive, that they would still be together and be happy. He could wake up in the morning and be greeted by her lovely face, he could still taste her kisses and feel her warmth, and Julie would continue to be there for him, loving and supporting him as always.

Even if she had developed the condition that killed her anyways, Rick knew he could cure her, but he couldn't cure her now that she was dead. Despite his genius, Rick couldn't reverse death. He didn't see cloning as an option either, because while he could do that, it wouldn't be the same, the clone wouldn't be the Julie he fell in love with, it would be someone completely different.

Before Julie had entered his life, it had been lonely, miserable, empty and depressing. But once she had become apart of it, his life instantly became better. She'd brought out the best in him, made him feel genuinely happy, probably for even the first time in his life, and was the first to show him love and kindness.

Now she was gone, and the empty feelings had returned to him, the only way they could be filled, the only way his heart could heal is if she came back into his life. But because she was dead, that was impossible. Rick believed he was doomed to remain a depressed, suicidal alcoholic for the rest of his miserable life.

He took out the crystal rose he'd gotten for Julie, before they'd even started dating. She'd loved it so much, and he could still remember the day he took her to that gemstone planet visibility. Rick remembered they'd even had their wedding there. He clutched onto rose and angrily threw it on the floor, but it didn't break, there wasn't even a crack, it stayed still and intact.

Rick pulled out his flask and opened it, downing some alcohol as more tears stained his face.

* * *

 **a/n: Ooooh boy, it's finally done. But I will be going back to fix things, add new things and anything else I feel is needed. And oh, about Beth's nose, it's meant to be a combination of Rick and Julie's noses. Julie and Beth though, do have the same eye shape(always thought it was weird that Diane doesn't...). BTW, even if Diane is confirmed as the canon or someone else, I don't care. I'm far too attached to Julie to get rid of her, ever.**

 **This is my passion project essentially. As the story's description says, I made Julie all the way back in 2014, Mark and Vivian as well. I spent 4 years developing these characters and their relationships. The only characters that are newly created are Cyn and Pyri. 4 years ago I started watching Rick and Morty, and ended up getting the idea to make a design for , leading to Julie's creation and now..this.**

 **if enough people like this, i will upload the midquel that expands more on some stuff, and the one-shots collection. They're both up on ao3 right now, and the link to my ao3 account is in my profile.**


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